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HomeMy Public PortalAbout02.20.2008 Park Commission MinutesMedina Park Commission Meeting Minutes February 20, 2008 Medina City Hall Page 1 of 3 The Park Commission of Medina, Minnesota met in regular session on February 20, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. in the Medina City Hall. Park Commission Vice Chair Ben Benson presided. 1) Call to Order Commissioners present: Commissioners absent: Also present: Ben Benson, Galen Bruer, Brian Kingsley, Madeleine Linck and Beth Nielsen Ann Thies and Bob Pastor Linda Lane, Steve Scherer, and Carolyn Smith 2) Additions to the Agenda: a) Resignation letter from Bob Pastor (4a, after public comments) b) Madeleine Linck asked to add a question concerning soliciting for nesting boxes. A motion was made by Ben Benson and seconded by Madeleine Linck to approve the additions/changes to the agenda. Motion passed unanimously. 3) Approval of the Minutes from January 16, 2008: • Section 7: Parkview: This trail would run along Parkview Drive from County road 24 to Hamel Road/County Road 115. • Section 7: Blackfoot Chestnut Loop: This trail would run west from Blackfoot Trail along the wetland and cut back to the proposed trail on Chestnut Road. • Section 7: (Last paragraph) The Park Commission briefly discussed a public trail that would go around School Lake, but came to the conclusion that there presently was not public access to a proposed city trail. • Section 9: Construct and conduct a rain garden demonstration project • Section 11 d): It should be 13D.01 et.seq., not 471.705. A motion was made by Brian Kingsley and seconded by Beth Nielsen to approve the minutes as corrected, as well as a couple of grammatical errors. Motion passed unanimously. 4) Public Comments (on items not on the agenda): a) The resignation letter from Bob Pastor was recognized and briefly discussed. Park Commission members were encouraged to solicit any individuals they felt might be interested. The Park Commissioners requested that staff send a thank you letter to Bob Pastor for his service. b) Madeleine Linck discussed the possibility of finding an organization or individual interested in constructing some nesting boxes to put in a few of the city parks. She said Phil Zietlow had mentioned that he had leftover pieces for putting together several Bluebird houses, and she had also spoken to Jodi about putting a short piece in the next Newsletter concerning the Park Commissions' interest in finding someone willing to build some Wood Duck houses or a possible source to locate some for putting in few of the parks. Medina Park Commission Meeting Minutes February 20, 2008 Medina City Hall Page 2 of 3 5) Cleanup Day There was brief discussion concerning the list submitted in the packet, as well as whether a booth was the best way to distribute the information chosen on Cleanup Day. Carolyn Smith had a couple of ideas from previous cleanup days she has been involved in for getting the information into the hands of the residents that may not even get out of their vehicles. The final consensus was to look over the list Jodi Wunsch put in the packet, as well as the handouts provided, and have each Park Commission member bring at least five of their top favorites, as well as ideas on the best way to distribute, to the next meeting. 6) Trail Plan Prioritization Ben Benson went over the list of trails and the Park Commission prioritized the following trails using Moderately High, Moderately Low and Low as measuring tools: • Moderately Low -- Holy Name — Hunter Trail • Low -- Mohawk Trail • Low -- East Chippewa • Low -- West Chippewa • Moderately Low — Parkview • Low -- Blackfoot Chestnut Loop • Low -- Prairie Drive Trail • Low -- Homestead and Parkview Trail • Moderately High -- Brockton Lane • Low -- Morgan/Blackfoot Loop The Park Commission then asked to have the updated trail study document prepared for the March meeting. Verbiage on material for trail surfaces would also be discussed at the March Park Commission meeting. 7) Comprehensive Plan Update An informal update was given and Carolyn Smith informed the Park Commission concerning the review period timeline. The Park Commission members requested, and were given, a copy of the park/trail portion of the comp plan that had been given to the Council, as well as surrounding cities, schools and the watershed districts. 8) Staff Report a) Hamel Legion Park Improvements • Fountain & Funding — Galen Bruer handed out pictures of two bronze fountains that he had found online, which he felt were similar to what had been discussed by the Park Commission at a previous meeting. Both fountains depicted children, but the cost and size were both issues, since the extra amount had not been figured into the budget for this year and the size may be too overpowering for the designated area. The consensus was to have the Park Commission members team up or go on their own to the Community Center once the snow melts and get a Medina Park Commission Meeting Minutes February 20, 2008 Medina City Hall Page 3 of 3 feel for the size needed. The other concern was the shipping costs involved and suggestions were made to see if the Park Commission could find a manufacturer in the Twin Cities area, or an art school that would possibly have someone interested in designing what the Park Commission was looking for. The Park Commission also discussed with Steve Scherer the possibility of having the Public Works Department build the base for the fountain to save that portion of the money. Scherer said they should be able to fit that into the schedule. Beth Nielsen said she was willing to check with a couple of Art Schools to see if there would be a student willing to be commissioned to design what the Park Commission wanted; Carolyn Smith said she would check on architectural antiques online; and Madeleine Linck said she would check with a local company that she felt would have a large selection to choose from. The Park Commissioners all agreed the cost should be kept as close to the budget as possible. • Light on Sliding Hill — Steve Scherer was asked if it would be possible to add the light that had been requested at the top of the sliding hill at Hamel Legion Park. His concerns were: 1) for safety reasons, sliding on the back side of the hill should not be encouraged; 2) with a light shining down from the top of the hill into the eyes of the people climbing up, you would not be able to see if someone was sliding towards you; and 3) the nuisance of a bright light shining into neighboring homes may cause complaints. He said the light below by the skating rink was enough to shine on the front side of the sliding hill. b) Update on Ba11 Field Agreements — Steve Scherer and Carolyn Smith gave a brief history on what has been happening with the ball fields and the Athletic Association to date. Smith then went over the six points the Mayor had suggested using as guidelines when considering field usage for the future, which had been copied and handed out at the beginning of the meeting. c) Newsletter Articles Related to Parks — Madeleine Linck mentioned she would like to see a brief statement concerning the Park Commissions' interest in adding Wood Duck Houses, as previously mentioned. The Park Commission also wanted to make sure that there was an article soliciting for another Park Commission member. 9) Adjourn A motion was made by Galen Bruer, seconded by Beth Nielsen and passed unanimously, to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 p.m. Minutes prepared by Linda Lane