HomeMy Public PortalAbout09.17.2008 Park Commission MinutesMedina Park Commission Meeting Minutes
September 17, 2008
Medina City Hall
Page 1 of 5
The Park Commission of Medina, Minnesota met in regular session on September 17, 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, Peter Lecy, Madeleine Linck, Beth Nielsen
and Ann Thies (arrived 7:05 p.m.)
Galen Bruer and Brian Kingsley
Jodi Gallup, Steve Scherer, and Kim Ann
2) Additions to the Agenda: None
3) Approval of the Minutes
• August 20, 2008 Special Meeting
A motion was made by Madeleine Linck and seconded by Peter Lecy to approve the
minutes, correcting the list of Commissioners present. Motion passed unanimously.
• August 20, 2008 Regular Meeting
Pg. 3, par. 7: Add language regarding the discussion on the responsibility to clean the
bathrooms in the proposed concession stand.
Pg. 3, par. 8: The word collaborate should be replaced with compile.
Pg. 3, par. 9: ..."Saturday Morning Bird Watel} Walks".
A motion was made by Ben Benson and seconded by Beth Nielsen to approve the minutes
with the noted changes. Motion passed unanimously.
4) Public Comments (on items not on the agenda): None
5) Recreation Subcommittee's Feasibility Study
Kim Ann presented the current situation and the three scenarios of the Recreation
Subcommittee's feasibility study.
Scenario A would be to build the concession stand without knowing how it will be
managed and operated and with out having any past financial records.
Scenario B would be to use the existing building or the Hamel Lions trailer to run
concessions. This option would allow an organization to firmly establish a structure for
staffing, volunteers, ordering, food preparations, and record keeping.
Scenario C would involve expanding the selection of management groups to nearby
organizations such as Orono or Plymouth/Wayzata ball programs.
Medina Park Commission Meeting Minutes
September 17, 2008
Medina City Hall
Page 2 of 5
Kim Ann also stated the City of Medina does need a firm commitment of who will
operate the concessions by December 1, 2008. The City will also require concise book
keeping from the operating organization. The creation of an operations/management plan
is crucial to getting the concession stand built.
Linck questioned why concessions were not done during the 2008 season?
John Kastner stated that management of the Hamel Ball Association had switched from
the past president to him and he ran out of time to get concessions organized. He stated
that by the time he reorganized everything and got the contract and scheduling figured
out, they were already into the season. By the time he would have got concessions
organized the season would have been almost over.
Nielsen stated that she has not seen a large response from the public in wanting a
concession stand. She questioned how many residents want a concession stand?
Kim Ann stated that she did a survey at the park one night and had a high response rate of
people interested in having concessions.
Linck stated she did not think the City should rush into building a fancy building without
first getting concrete numbers.
Ben Benson questioned if the concession stand is a profit maker?
Bob Pastor, past Park Commissioner and Medina resident, stated that the revenue would
off set the costs, but it is not a cash cow. He stated that he has been involved in working
concessions and it is a great time to bond with other families in the program.
Pastor also stated that concession will help the fields come alive, followed by lights. He
supports the construction of the concession stand as long as someone will manage it.
Lecy stated that he agreed with Pastor's comments. He also stated that the City has
committed to building the concession stand in the Capital Improvement Plan. He has
also seen the commitment from the community and that is why the Park Commission is
proactively working on flushing through all the details to see what makes sense.
Lecy stated that other cities either have Park and Recreation Departments or Athletic
Associations that manage concession buildings. The City does not have a Park and
Recreation Department, but has seen interest from the Hamel Lions, Hamel Athletic
Association, and the Hamel Fire Department. The tax payers of the community still want
to know what it will cost the City to manage this facility.
Thies stated that the bottom line is to recommend using the existing facility or a trailer for
the 2009 season to get a financial operations report.
Medina Park Commission Meeting Minutes
September 17, 2008
Medina City Hall
Page 3 of 5
Linck questioned how many people use the fields on weekends?
Gallup stated that it is difficult to use the fields for weekend tournaments right now
because the City does not have a field rental policy in place. Every time an organization
wants to use the fields they need to go through contract negotiations and get it approved
by the City Council. The 2008 season had three weekend tournaments.
Gerry Dykhoff asked to speak to Beth Nielsen's comment about public interest in
building a concession stand. He stated that $95,000 has been fund raised to build a new
concession building. He stated that they had been working on trying to get this built since
2002 and he feels that a number of people have given up hope.
Thies stated that the Subcommittee was encouraged when they received the letter from
the Hamel Lions. She asked Tom Dykhoff if he would like to speak to it.
Tom Dykhoff, representing the Hamel Lions, stated that they would commit to being the
go to organization for running the concession building. He also reminded everyone that
the concessions were just a small portion of the buildings uses. This building would be a
multi -purpose facility, primarily storage and decent bathrooms. The building would also
be a future electrical hub for lights and possibly a future water supply to irrigate the
fields.
Tom Dykhoff stated that using the existing building for another year would be a
challenge as it does not meet health code.
Scherer suggested building two buildings; one for concessions and one for storage.
Scherer stated it would be cheaper to build a separate storage building, but Tom Dykhoff
disagreed with him.
Tom Dykhoff asked the Park Commission if they were satisfied with the current storage
facilities at the ball fields. The Park Commission was unsure of the need or use of the
current buildings.
Scherer stated that the City does not have anything stored in the current buildings.
Thies stated that everything that has been discussed all comes back to operations and
maintenance of the proposed concession building.
The next step is to have Kim Ann finish gathering financial information and bring back a
report to the sub -committee prior to the next Park Commission meeting. At the October
Park Commission meeting a recommendation will be made to be presented to the Council
at the October 21st Council meeting.
Medina Park Commission Meeting Minutes
September 17, 2008
Medina City Hall
Page 4 of 5
6) Medina Celebration Day
Jodi Gallup asked the Park Commission if anyone was interested in volunteering at
Medina Celebration Day on Saturday, September 27th. The event committee is looking
for help with set-up and tear -down. Ben Benson and Madeleine Linck volunteered.
Gallup also asked the Park Commission if they would be interested in displaying any
projects at the City's booth and if anyone wanted to help work the booth.
Benson suggested a presentation be done recognizing all the dedications that have been
made to our parks. He stated that many residents have gone above and beyond and
deserve recognition for their donations to the park including benches, tables, a fountain,
and tree.
Linck requested that the City bring park brochures and a parks map.
Thies suggested printing out the slides from the recreation open house last month.
Nielsen requested that the City print name tags for the Park Commissioners that will be in
attendance.
Benson, Nielsen, and Linck all volunteered to take shifts at the booth if necessary.
7) Staff Report
a) Holy Name Park: Steve Scherer showed the Park Commission updated pictures of
the Holy Name Park project. The installation of the pervious pavers and pervious
concrete has been completed. The rain garden has been planted and the trail is
complete. The project is almost complete; the park still needs signage and black top
for the driveway.
b) Rain Water Nature Area: Scherer gave a quick update on progress made at Rain
Water Nature Area, stating that the sidewalk will be paved within the next few weeks.
c) Beach at Lakeshore Park: Scherer updated the Park Commission that staff did not
find an existing agreement with anyone regarding the maintaining of Lakeshore Park
as a swimming beach. Staff recommended that residents use the beach down the road
at Baker Park as a swimming beach. The Public Works department does not have
staff to regularly rake the weeds. Benson commented that the beach is probably not
safe as is and would need to be delineated and a swimming area would need to be
roped off. There would be additional liability to have a non -guarded swimming
beach.
d) County Road 19 Trail: Scherer stated that work has begun on the trail in Baker Park
from Maple Street to the Three Rivers Park District maintenance shop. Trees have
Medina Park Commission Meeting Minutes
September 17, 2008
Medina City Hall
Page 5 of 5
been removed and it was reported that the boardwalk would be finished before the
spring frog crossing.
e) Other General Updates: Scherer stated that he just came from a resident's home on
County Road 116 trying to negotiate an easement for the County Road 116 trail.
9) Adjourn
A motion was made by Ben Benson, seconded by Peter Lecy and passed unanimously, to
adjourn the meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.
Minutes prepared by Jodi Gallup.