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Home My WebLink About2023-05-18 Parks and Trails Minutes CITY OF CORCORAN Corcoran Parks and Trails Meeting Minutes May 18, 2023 - 7:30 pm The Corcoran Parks and Trails Commission met on May 18, 2023, in Corcoran, MN. Present were Chairperson Anderson, Vice-Chairperson Christenson, and Commissioners Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. Absent was Commissioner Erzberger. Present virtually was Councilmember Nichols. Also present was Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck and Program Coordinator Shipley. 1. Call to Order / Roll Call Chairperson Anderson called the meeting to order at 7:30 pm. 2. Pledge of Allegiance Chairperson Anderson invited all in attendance to rise and join in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. Agenda Approval Motion: Made by Nybo, seconded by Wyffels, to approve the agenda as presented. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) 4. Minutes a. Minutes – April 20, 2023, Work Session Motion: Made by Christenson, seconded by Wyffels, to approve the minutes as presented. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) b. Minutes – April 20, 2023, Meeting Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted a typo and adjustment to the minutes and requested to make the changes as part of the approved motion. Motion: Made by Nybo, seconded by Friedrich, to approve the minutes with staff recommended adjustments. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) 5. Open Forum Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that there were no individuals interested in speaking. 6. Presentations – None 7. Unfinished Business 8. New Business a. City Park – Memorial Conversation Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck provided background information on the Espeseth/Wacker family, stating that their daughter, Brianna, recently passed away from strep throat and the family was looking to donate back to the park in memory of Brianna. Becky Wacker, Brianna’s mother, gave an overview of Brianna, noting her kind personality, positive demeanor, and the family’s love of City Park, which they referred to as “The Dinosaur Playground”. Wacker explained to the Commission the family’s desire to give back in financial and labor donations towards the City Park remaster of the playground, in honor of Brianna. Wacker noted that their family would like to see some remembrance of Brianna, through signage, feedback during the design process, or acceptance of donations. Commissioners expressed their condolences to the family and discussed the options of involving the family during the process as no current policy was in place to address CITY OF CORCORAN donations such as this. Commissioner Friedrich recommended keeping a dinosaur theme to encourage the continuation of the dinosaur park. Vice-Chairperson Christenson asked the family if they had thought through ideas for the park, to which Wacker informed the Commission that purple and green were her favorite colors, in addition to the dinosaur theme at the playground. Vice- Chairperson Christenson expressed interest in handling this as a one-off instance, but addressing a future policy associated with donations and memorials. Commissioner Wyffels informed the Commission of a set of wooden, family swings that people were using when she was in Washington, D.C. that could be an option in conjunction with this request, or as an addition to the park plan. Motion: Made by Friedrich, seconded by Nybo, to recommend City Council approve working with the family, separately from a memorial/donation program, to involve them in the remaster process. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) b. Corcoran Meat Locker Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck provided information to the Commission regarding the Corcoran Meat Locker land, informing them that the family that owns the land has not come back to staff with an updated appraisal of the land. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that the Planning and Public Works Departments would not recommend purchasing the land from park dedication funds as it would limit the use of the land to strictly park improvements. Commissioners discussed the potential for work on the land and demolition to make the space usable. Commissioner Friedrich inquired about an amphitheater possibility in the area if the land was purchased, to which Commissioners further discussed options for using the land. Commissioners determined that additional work would need to be completed to use the land and without determining a use for the land, it was not something the Parks and Trails Commission was interested in pursuing at this time. c. Red Barn Pet Retreat Preliminary Plat Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck provided information to the Commission regarding the application, summarizing that it consisted of a 14.89-acre outlot, the Comprehensive Plan showed some trails that have already been planned along County Road 101 and in the Bellwether development, and the staff recommendation was to take cash-in-lieu of land at an estimated $15,368.92. Motion: Made by Christenson, seconded by Nybo, to recommend City Council approve accepting cash-in-lieu of land for the park dedication on the property. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) d. City Park Consultant Subcommittee Representative Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that City Council approved receiving consultant assistance in park planning, accelerating projects, and creation of park planning templates. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck requested that the Commission nominate a representative to take part in the process, to which Commissioner Friedrich expressed interest in serving in that role. Motion: Made by Nybo, seconded by Wyffels, to nominate Commissioner Friedrich as the Parks and Trails Commission representative for the process. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) e. Garden Club – Purchase Request CITY OF CORCORAN Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck provided background on the Garden Club request for $750.00 to purchase plants and items to beautify the Memorial Garden. Tom Anderson informed the Commission that the left side of the Memorial Garden got updated last year, but more can be done. Motion: Made by Nybo, seconded by Friedrich, to approve the Garden Club purchase of up to $750.00 to beautify the Memorial Garden area. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) 9. Reports/Information a. Active Planning Applications – Informational Only Commissioner Nybo inquired about Corcoran Farms, to which Councilmember Nichols informed the Commission that the application is still valid but may lapse as the applicant explores tenant options. b. Recreation Supervisor Update Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission of items that she had been working on including working with Three Rivers Park District on the Diamond Lake Regional Trail, Night to Unite items, Parks and Trails Commission materials, and park reservations. Chairperson Anderson inquired about the uses of the park reservations, as the City Park remaster project moves forward to guide the planning based on uses. c. Program Coordinator Update Program Coordinator informed the Commission on items that he had been working on including baseball wrap-up, soccer preparations, Night to Unite items, handbook/policy updates, and surveys for athletics. 10. Subcommittee & Miscellaneous Reports a. City Council Report Councilmember Nichols highlighted City Council discussions including the Cook Lake Highlands development and Hackamore Road improvements. Commissioner Strehler inquired about the Cook Lake Highland senior co-op, to which Councilmember Nichols informed the Commission that the building footprint remains the same, but with a rental model, the number of units increase. Chairperson Anderson inquired about the work sessions that they held, to which Councilmember Nichols informed the Commission of the buffer zone and rental ordinance work sessions. b. Garden Club Report Tom Anderson updated the Commission on the tree giveaway and the remaining trees from the event. c. Park Dedication Fund Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that updates to the spreadsheet would be reflected at the June Parks and Trails Commission meeting as the finance department should have the audit completed at that time. Councilmember Nichols inquired about higher interest rates, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed them that she would discuss that with the finance department. 11. Other Business/Announcements – None 12. Commissioner Liaison Calendar 05/25/2023 06/08/2023 06/22/2023 07/13/2023 07/27/2023 08/10/2023 08/24/2023 Friedrich Nybo Nybo Friedrich Wyffels Christenson Anderson Erzberger Strehler Commissioners Nybo and Friedrich discussed switching their May 25 and June 8 City Council liaison dates. 13. Adjournment CITY OF CORCORAN Motion: Made by Strehler, seconded by Wyffels, to adjourn the meeting at 8:41 pm. Voting Aye: Anderson, Christenson, Friedrich, Nybo, Strehler, and Wyffels. (Motion carried 6:0) Submitted by Jessica Christensen Buck, Recreation Supervisor