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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPark and Recreation Advisory Commission Minutes 09-08-2011MINUTES OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING September 8, 2011 PRESENT: Commissioners: G. Anderson, N. Carroll, M. Riley, K. Wyse, J. Zwack Staff: D. Evans, D. Sankey, C. Anderson, A. Krumholz Planning Commission Liaison: D. Kobusson City Council Liaison: Bob Stein ABSENT: A. Vanderwall, J. Vecere 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Carroll called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES MOTION was made by Commissioner Anderson and seconded by Commissioner Zwack to approve the June minutes. Vote: 5 Ayes. Motion carried. 3. OPEN FORUM 4. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS (NON -ACTION ITEMS): a. Staff Presentations: Cindy Anderson and Alyssa Krumholz, Recreation Supervisors Cindy Anderson and Alyssa Krumholz spoke on upcoming special events. The kickoff for Plymouth on Parade is on Friday night, September 23. There is a Spaghetti Dinner fund raiser for senior programs at the Plymouth Creek Center and a Movie in the Park, Megamind," at the Fieldhouse field. The Fire Department has its Fun Run 5K at Fire Station 2 on September 24 at 9:00 a.m. The Parade starts at 11:30. Chair Carroll asked about Movie with the Mayor. Krumholz said it is on Saturday, September 10, at dusk, and the film will be "Secretariat." Carroll asked how the movie program was working. Anderson and Krumholz said it is going very well. The screen is huge, and teens, families, and all ages are enjoying it. Carroll asked about picture quality. Anderson says it is exceptional. Projection is from behind the screen. Director Evans said the first movie, "Despicable Me," had an attendance of over 800. Krumholz also mentioned that the Farmers Market continues through October 12 on Wednesdays from 2:30-6:30 p.m. PRAC Minutes/September 8, 2011 Page 2 5. NEW BUSINESS (ACTION ITEMS): a. Three Rivers Park District - Bassett Creek Presentation Kelly Gruseman from Three Rivers Park District reported that they have been working on the Bassett Creek Trail project with the city for about a year. Three Rivers currently has100 miles of regional trails, and more are planned. They are trying to connect points of interest and provide a continuous route that is cost effective and safe. They want everyone to be within 2-3 miles of a regional trail. They also want to make the trail corridor attractive to the users. This project would connect French Park to Theodore Wirth Park. Plymouth is fortunate to have two existing regional trails already. The visitor estimate for this new trail is about 175,000 visits per year. The trail in Plymouth would be along 36th Avenue. It would be on the north side from Zachary Lane to Pilgrim Lane, then crossing the street to the south side. They feel it would be a safer place to cross than at Highway 169. The estimated cost is $330,000. The current trail on the north side would be expanded from eight feet to ten feet wide. Commissioner Anderson asked why it needs to cross the road instead of being on the south side the whole way. Gruseman said there would be a lot of impact on private properties on the south side. The best case is to have 10 -foot wide pavement with a 2- 3 foot clear zone on each side. There is not a lot of room along 36th Avenue to keep the trail the desired distance from the road, but perhaps in the future, if the road is reconfigured, the trail could be reconfigured, too. Anderson asked why the trail jogs north in New Hope instead of staying along 36th Avenue. Gruseman explained that the City of New Hope was concerned about right of way along this segment, and they wanted the trail to go through a nearby park. Chair Carroll asked how long that section is. Gruseman said about'/2 mile. Councilmember Stein asked about the Luce Line and the crossing at Xenium Lane. Gruseman said they have a federal grant for 2013 construction. Stein asked whether it would go to the Council. Gruseman said that could be done. Director Evans asked if it could go through PRAC to showcase it. Gruseman said that was a very reasonable request, and she would work with Evans to make that happen. b. 2012-2016 CIP Draft - (Informational; approval at October meeting) Director Evans showed the commissioners the proposed 2012-2016 CIP. She said that we were very careful and fiscally responsible during development of the CIP and tried to be conservative with Park Replacement funds. We need to carefully maintain the park system as we go forward. We usually budget $120,000 - $130,000 per year to do trail gaps. For the 2012 CIP, we budgeted $230,000 knowing some of the gaps are getting more expensive to accomplish. We are now budgeting every other year so that more expensive segments can be done. In 2012, there is $2.5 million for land acquisition budgeted. Part of it is bonding money for the Northwest Greenway. There is also some for additional land that could be purchased. We show $1.5 million for 2013. A consultant for land acquisition has been hired. Eric Blank will work on these issues. A trail crossing underpass at Cheshire Lane is budgeted at $250,000 to connect the Greenway to the regional trail. For the next two to three years, we will be looking at renovating instead of replacing the playgrounds. The Playfield Lighting PRAC Minutes/September 8, 2011 Page 3 budget shows the payment to the Community Improvement Fund. Turf replacement would come from the Fieldhouse fund and from a Hennepin County Sport Grant. The current turf will only last about one more year. An irrigation replacement project is budgeted in 2014 at the Ice Center/Lifetime Fitness property. It is coordinated with a parking lot replacement project. Commissioner Anderson asked if the entire irrigation system would be replaced. Evans said yes, some of the underground pipes are broken and the system is not working. The second phase of Hilde Performance Center upgrades involves the entrance from Plymouth Blvd, trails, and a playground. In 2014, we may add an additional hockey rink to the system, probably at Elm Creek with a possible partnership with Wayzata High School. We would apply for a Hennepin County Sport Grant. The Plymouth Creek Splash Pad was removed from the CIP by Council. Chair Carroll said the splash pads he has seen are wildly popular. Director Evans said perhaps it can be presented to the Council again at a later date. We would try to get the Northwest Greenway Trail from Vicksburg Lane to Juneau Lane constructed in 2014. This is important because we applied for a federal grant for the overpass over Vicksburg Lane. This would involve $600,000 from city funding and 1 million from the grant. Millennium Garden enhancements in 2014 could involve a glass atrium and perhaps another art piece. The Garden has its own funding from the Yard & Garden fundraiser and Lifetime Fitness donations. A turf field is shown in 2015 at $1 million, and it would probably be installed at Elm Creek Playfield. These fields are very heavily used. A turf field would allow groups on earlier in the season. We would like to do one on the east side as well. Traditions Neighborhood Park is the old Hampton Hills Golf Course. We have acquired over 5 acres for a park. The developer is encouraging us to get the park done as quickly as possible. Lighting replacement in Parkers Lake Park is scheduled in 2013. Commissioner Wyse asked about the turf field at the Fieldhouse and how long it can be expected to last. Evans said about 10-15 years. Wyse asked how old it is. Evans said about 10 years. It gets a lot of use. c. Golf Medal Video Submission PRAC Minutes/September 8, 2011 Page 4 Director Evans explained that we are one of four cities of our size in the country up for a gold medal this year. We prepared a video as part of the application. Since the audio is not working tonight, we will have to postpone showing the video until our next meeting. 6. COMMISSIONER/STAFF UPDATES Director Evans spoke on the following topics: o Plymouth Dog Park The project is underway. Most of the sidewalks and curbing have been installed. The park is still open. We were able to provide access to some parkland to the south of the park to use for parking. We are also adding water to the site to provide potable water for the dogs. Amenities like benches will also be added. o Playfield Lighting This project will be completed in a couple of weeks at a cost $2.2-2.3 million dollars. A few change orders have been added. They are currently working at Parkers Lake, then on to Bass Lake. The lights are all computerized, and we can turn them on and off from our desks. We have had a lot of positive comments from neighbors and users of the parks on the new lights. o Plymouth Creek Skate Park We worked with a consultant from California on the design of the park. He is a guru on skate parks, and we are lucky to have him. The cost of the project came in over our budget. We were prepared for this with a base bid and alternates. Commissioner Wyse asked when construction starts. Evans said we had a construction meeting today, and it will start full speed next week. Chair Carroll asked about the green spaces in the plan. Evans explained that they are items to jump over. We will probably use artificial turf in those spaces. The facility provides for many different levels of skill. Commissioner Zwack asked if the facility is at grade. Evans said the main part is at grade and some parts are built up. The designer worked on the facility in St. Cloud, which is very popular. They learned from that project and incorporated what they learned into our project. It is scheduled to be completed the end of October. Gohman is the contractor. o Upcoming Community/Special Events Kathleen Murdock is resigning from Council. They will go through a process to fill that position. Bellediva is performing at the Hilde Center tonight. The summer concert series has been very popular this year. "Secretariat" will be the movie shown at Movie with the Mayor on September 10. The Farmers Market has had good turnouts this year. The PRAC Minutes/September 8, 2011 Page 5 last day is Oct 12. Plymouth on Parade activities start September 23 with the Spaghetti Dinner and a Movie at the Fieldhouse. The Parade is on September 24. Commissioner Anderson asked about the current year's trail project. Director Evans said it was approved by Council, but there have been a few glitches. A few utilities and fiber optics are underground in this space. We looked at the other side of the road, but there was not enough roadway easement. Because of the fiber optics, we will put in a sidewalk instead of asphalt. Residents have been advised. 7. ADJOURNMENT Chair Carroll entertained the motion to adjourn. MOTION was made by Commissioner Zwack and seconded by Commissioner Anderson. Vote: 5 Ayes. Motion approved. The meeting adjourned at 8:14 p.m. The next meeting will be held on October 13 at the Plymouth Ice Center. Donna Sankey - PRAC recorder