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
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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