HomeMy WebLinkAboutPark and Recreation Advisory Commission Minutes 07-14-2005MINUTES OF THE PARK AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING
July 14, 2005
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PRESENT: Commissioners Fiemann, Aamoth, Davis, Krahulec, Mohagen, Pederson,
Rezabek; staff Blank, Busch, Evans, Pederson; Planning Commissioner Weir
ABSENT: Commissioners Griwac, Singer
CALL TO ORDER
Chair Fiemann called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. in the Plymouth Creek
Center Conference Room.
2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Commissioner Davis made a motion to approve the minutes of the May meeting.
Commissioner Aamoth seconded. Motion carried, all ayes.
Director Blank introduced Max Mohagen, who was recently appointed as a youth at -
large member of the commission. He lives near Mooney Lake and has lived there
for four years. He plays hockey and formerly played baseball and soccer. He also
enjoys golf. He attends Wayzata High School. The other commissioners and staff
introduced themselves and briefly described their backgrounds.
3. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS
a. Athletic Associations. None were present.
b. Staff. Evans discussed Music in Plymouth. She said approximately 14,000
attended the event, the largest crowd ever. It went very well. Rezabek said the
fireworks were fantastic, but began much too late. He received a number of
complaints about that. Other commissioners who attended agreed that the
fireworks began too late, and commented that the cannon wasn't necessary, as
it did not add anything to the program. Evans and Blank agreed and said the
cannon would be dropped from the event in the future, and that the fireworks
would begin at 10:05 next year. Davis said his mother-in-law was in town from
Philadelphia, and she was very impressed with the event. Blank stated that
Evans is now a board member of the Plymouth Civic League, a position that he
held for a number of years. She is heavily involved with the site operations on
the day of the event. Evans talked about events coming up including the parade,
which also encompasses the art fair, a 5K fun run, pancake breakfast, women's
health/heart fair, post parade entertainment, Ducky Derby, and an evening
concert that will be held at the Wayzata High School. All of these events take
place on Saturday, September 24. The first City Council meeting was held at the
Black Box Theater on Tuesday, due to city hall construction now moving to the
main building. All city meetings will be taking place at the Plymouth Creek Center
for the next several months. The second Halloween at the Creek is October 31
at the Plymouth Creek Center. We expect 1,000 to participate in that. The Water
Ski show was held Tuesday evening at Parkers Lake. The beaches have been
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packed due to the hot weather. We're getting ready to send our next brochure to
the printer in a week.
4. REPORT ON PAST COUNCIL ACTION
a. No report.
5. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
a. No report.
6. NEW BUSINESS
a. Review Plymouth Creek Center operations. Busch gave an overview of
operations at the Plymouth Creek Center and reviewed the handouts that were
given to the commissioners in their packets. He stated they have five full-time
staff — Busch is the general manager, and there is one full time maintenance
worker, one full time clerical who works mostly with the senior program, a second
full time clerical that works on wedding planning and all other bookings. Her
position is titled rental coordinator. And there is one full time senior coordinator
that is contracted through Senior Community Services. Additional employees are
part-time, including a second maintenance person who is seasonal. There is a
half-time clerical person who works in the mid morning to early afternoon. There
are evening and weekend building supervisors, too. The building opens at 8 a.m.
and closes around 10 pm. There are a number of volunteers who also help out
during the day, along with field house supervisors. Busch said they booked
about 1,500 hours at the field house spread over 25 weeks, 60 hours a week,
from 5-11 p.m. and 7 a.m.-11 p.m. on weekends. The six-month period of
January, February, March, April, November and December of 2004 took in
310,000, netting about $120,000 after expenses. Soccer is the major activity
taking place in the field house using about 80% of the total time. There is a
growing lacrosse program, and girls' high school softball takes place in the field
house, along with rugby, golf, and the popular walking track. Busch estimated
that 23,000 walkers probably use the track in the winter months. Evans said the
field house is also used for special events like the Yard and Garden Expo and
the Halloween at the Creek event. When the activity center opened five years
ago, part of the lower level was not used and some of it was leased to a
company to do specialized sports training, Busch said. The Council approved
expansion of the lower level three years ago, and that construction was
completed about one year ago. This expansion added the Black Box Theater,
multi-purpose rooms, music rooms, conference rooms, and a food court area.
About 92-94% of the groups that use the facility do not pay a fee. The goal of the
City Council was to have this building used first by city groups, community
groups, Plymouth non-profit groups, etc. The remaining 6-8% of the users are
paying a fee for things such as weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs, etc. Tax dollars
help support this facility. Busch said we'll spend $450,000 annually to run the
activity center, and we'll take in $150,00 in revenue. There are a lot of city
meetings taking place here now, due to the construction at city hall. The groups
that make up the 92-94% usage include park and recreation activities (40%),
seniors (31 %), staff meetings (14%), non-profit groups (7%). Aamoth asked
about the problems that might be created by having city meetings here, and if
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this will force others out. Busch said some of the non-profit groups may move to
the Ice Center, and other groups that were scheduled in the Black Box Theater
may be shifted to other rooms in the Plymouth Creek Center. Saturdays are
committed to weddings, Blank said. Busch stated that there are 39 weddings
scheduled in the garden this year. Once Saturdays fill up in the garden,
weddings move to Fridays and Sundays. There were even small wedding groups
on Wednesday and Thursday last week. Busch said there is a new program in
the garden involving Plymouth residents who work in the garden maintaining it,
and doing plantings, etc. They are volunteers who assist two garden
maintenance workers. Aamoth asked if the city is liable regarding anything that
might occur as a result of alcohol being served during an event in the garden or
at the Plymouth Creek Center. Blank said there is always a police officer on site
when alcohol is being served. So far we haven't had any issues come up. The
bar closes at 11:30, Busch said. Bartenders are contracted through Suzanne's
Catering. Blank said cities can always be sued, but if we follow proper
procedures and do everything we can reasonably do, we should be okay.
Fiemann asked if staff talks to the rental groups about the rules and regulations
ahead of time. Busch said all rental parties are apprised of rules, regulations and
procedures before they finalize any rental. Each walk through for a wedding
takes two to three hours. Blank said that Sara wasn't able to be at this meeting,
so she will attend a meeting at a later date to discuss the senior programs.
Busch talked about Suzanne's Catering and how we get a percentage of the
money they bring in when they cater an event. The seniors are permitted to bring
in their own food, and then they also serve that food themselves. To supplement
the maintenance at the Plymouth Creek Center, there is a company called E-
quality that finds jobs for mentally retarded adults. They supply six people two
hours per day Monday -Friday to help clean. This service costs only $30 a day.
b. Review 2007 rental fees. Residents are allowed to book the facility 18 months in
advance, so it is necessary to discuss fees now for the years 2007-2008, Busch
explained. City budgets have been going up about 3% per year for inflation, etc.
Rezabek asked if a 3% increase is enough. Busch said he thinks that is
adequate. Blank explained that this facility was not built to be a large generator
of revenue, so there is no target number we have to reach. The higher we go
with our rates, Suzanne's Catering would likely raise their rates also. We want to
keep it reasonable, so we don't price ourselves out of the market. Busch feels
our fees are very fair. He has never received complaints about the rental rates.
Residents have an 18 -month priority when renting; non-residents are allowed to
reserve 12 months in advance. We try to remain competitive with The Reserve, a
catering business nearby on Fernbrook Lane. Pederson said our goal should be
to have fees as high as they can be without pricing anyone out. Fiemann said we
need to be competitive in the market place, but also be fair to the residents.
Rezabek suggested raising the non-resident rate more than the resident rate. Six
percent of the users should pay six percent of the operating rate Pederson said.
Staff is proposing a 3% increase each year for two years. Operating expenses
have increased due to the expansion of the lower level. Fiemann asked for
opinions from commissioners on the proposed fees. Blank said the Plymouth
Creek Center is in the general fund, which means it is taxpayer funded and
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operated. The limiting factor is that the building was designed to be for
community residents and the seniors, Blank said. Pederson said non-residents
should definitely be charged more. Aamoth asked what the demand is. Are we
turning people away? Busch said yes, everyday. The majority of people on
waiting lists are non-residents. REZABEK MOVED TO APPROVE FEES FOR
2007-2008 AS RECOMMENDED BY STAFF. DAVIS SECONDED. MOTION
CARRIED, ALL AYES.
c. Review 2006-2010 CIP. We have made an offer on the 10th playfield to buy 40
acres, but we have not received any response yet from the Begin family. Blank
reviewed the list of projects in 2005, including the playground at Queensland
Park, repairing the plaza at Parkers Lake Playfield, replacing doors and locks,
trail and parking lot repairs. Rezabek would like some sort of sun protection over
the dugouts. Evans said she knows that there is something like that, but they are
very expensive. For 2006, proposed projects include trail funding, another
payment toward the playfield acquisition, open space acquisition, trail and
parking lot repair, irrigation system, the last year of the monument signs, and
new walls and plaza at the Zachary Playfield. Blank said we're not getting a lot of
funding to take on new things, so we need to look seriously at whether we can
afford to build a neighborhood park in 2006. Seven Greens park is on the
schedule, and it would be fairly inexpensive to build, with low maintenance costs.
Davis was concerned about parks and recreation possibly taking budget cuts,
and he feels PRAC should speak up about this. Fiemann wanted to know when
the appropriate time would be to let the Council know how the Commission feels
about the budget and its impact on parks and recreation. Blank said he agrees
that the commissioners can approach the Council as individuals to voice their
concerns about the parks budget. The reason we do the capital budget at the
same time as the operating budget is to let the Council know upfront what to
expect. Fiemann asked when Seven Greens would be completely built out.
Pederson suggested delaying building the Seven Greens park until 2007.
Rezabek wanted to know what's going in on the northwest corner where the
underground water tank is going in. Blank said it will be landscaped with a lawn,
and eventually a fire station will be built there. Fiemann asked about buying
parcels in northwest Plymouth before development takes place. Aamoth asked if
there's a concern that development could happen before we have the funds to
buy property. Blank then reviewed the projects for 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Blank said that Hampton Hills has been sold and may be developed. A large
piece of the Northwest Greenway will be dedicated from Terren Hills. Until final
plats come in, we cannot commit to any major park projects. The comprehensive
plan is underway, Blank said. Some meeting dates have been set to discuss
development of northwest Plymouth. Aamoth asked what happens when the
entire park system is built and no more dedication money is coming in. Blank
said that the park replacement fund takes over then. Davis wanted to know
about the timeline for developing the 10th playfield. Blank said not until 2009 at
the earliest, if the Begin's accept the offer. In addition to the purchase price, it
would cost about $4 million to build the playfield.
7. COMMISSION PRESENTATION
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Davis mentioned that he was at the Music in Plymouth 5K. He parked his car on the
west side of Plymouth Boulevard and then crossed through the landscaping to get to
the entrance to the Hilde. He suggested installing a path across the landscaping,
which would be across from the Hilde entrance. Blank will ask the traffic engineer to
look into it.
8. STAFF COMMUNICATION
Blank discussed other items that were included in the packet, including the
controversial court decision regarding a golf course in Eagan. He also discussed
trail work we are doing. We had a couple of volunteers go over every inch of our trail
system and label them in terms of whether they were OK or needed minor or major
repairs. We are also looking at some software that allows bicyclists to wear a GPS
system on their backs, which creates a map as they ride along on the trail. Rezabek
asked if the city had ever looked into purchasing a golf course. Blank said he has
had discussions over the years with the owners of Hampton Hills, Hollydale and Elm
Creek, but nothing ever came of it, and now two of these courses have been sold to
developers. Blank said we may end up with four executive courses in Plymouth, but
probably never an 18 -hole course.
Blank said the August meeting needs to be moved to a different date, due to his
daughter's wedding rehearsal. August 4 is a possibility.
9. ADJOURN
The meeting adjourned at 9:25 p.m