Parks and Recreation Board

Maple Grove Parks and Recreation Board Regular Meeting June 15, 2023 Regular Meeting The regular meeting was called to order by Chair Bill Lewis at 7:00 p.m. Board Members Present Present in the Chambers were: Chair Bill Lewis, Vice Chair John Ferm, Board Members Ken Helvey, Krista Kuhnly, and Andy Mielke. Board Members Board Members absent were: Kelly Cunningham and Deb Absent Syhre. Also Present Also present in the Chambers were: Council Representative Hanson; Chuck Stifter, Director; Ben Jaszewski, Parks and Planning Superintendent; Aimee Peterson, Assistant Parks and Recreation Director; and Angie Dehn, Community Center Manager. Approval of Agenda Chair Lewis called for any changes to the agenda. Director Stifter replied there are none. Motion made by Vice Chair Ferm, seconded by Board Member Helvey to approve the agenda for the June 15, 2023 meeting as presented. Upon call for the question, on a voice vote, there were five ayes and no nays. Motion carried. Public Comments No requests were received. Special Business No items to present. Board Member Reports Chair Lewis explained a friend of his who coached baseball at a very high level that recently visited Gleason Fields. This friend called him to say that the Gleason Fields were very special. Board Member Kuhnly explained the State Tournament for Lacrosse was held at Fernbrook Fields again this year. Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 2 Staff Reports Director’s Report: Director Stifter provided the Board with an update on the Community Center renovation and expansion project. He explained the Board met at a worksession on June 5 and discussed the bonding bill. He noted the city received a grant for $6 million for design. He reported staff would be submitting a 2024 bonding bill request ($16.5 million) on Friday, June 15 to cover the balance of the budget for the project. He indicated the Council continues to meet in closed session to discuss the acquisition of the LifeTime space. Assistant Parks and Recreation Director’s Report: Aimee Peterson reported summer was in full swing and noted several staff members recently attending the Safety Fair at the Fire Station. Ms. Peterson stated the city held its first Tails and Ales event on Saturday, June 3. She indicated there were approximately 725 people in attendance. The event had 21 vendors and a K-9 presentation. Ms. Peterson explained the first Story Walk was in place and the story was about Juneteenth. Ms. Peterson encouraged the public to participate in the city’s Juneteenth celebration which would be held on Monday, June 19. She reviewed the entertainment that would be held at Town Green from 3:00 to 8:00 p.m. Ms. Peterson discussed the air quality index with the Board and commented on the thresholds that would trigger would be canceling outdoor recreation events. Parks and Planning Superintendent’s Report: Ben Jaszewski provided the Board with an update on the Gleason Fields and reviewed the tasks that had been completed in the last month. He noted the pickleball court nets were expected next week and several small electrical items have to be completed. He anticipated the irrigation system would begin tomorrow and once the site was seeded the park would really start to shine. He then reviewed several photos of the park with the Board. Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 3 Mr. Jaszewski discussed the spring 2023 playgrounds replacements and reviewed photos of these parks, which included Grove West, Hidden Meadows and Boundary Creek West. Board Member Mielke explained he has been to Gleason Fields several times with his children for ball games. He indicated he was hearing a lot of great feedback on this facility. Vice Chair Ferm commented he also visited Gleason Fields. He stated this was an amazing facility. He thanked staff for all their hard work on this project. Board Member Kuhnly reported she visited Gleason Fields for her nephews baseball game and her entire family was in awe of the facility. She questioned when the pickleball courts would be ready for use. Mr. Jaszewski anticipated the sleeving and posts would be installed next week and the painting would be completed in two weeks. Community Center Manager’s Report: Angie Dehn stated the outdoor pool opened a couple of weeks ago. She noted the pool has been busy due to the warm weather. She explained the city’s Aquatics Coordinator Adrienne Vassar completed her instructor course and could now train swim instructors for the city. Ms. Dehn reported Lisa Gedker applied for a lifeguard grant through Hennepin Youth Sports Program to assist with keeping lifeguards working all summer. Ms. Dehn explained the painting at the Kottemann Rink was now completed. Ms. Dehn stated a preschool graduation was held at Town Green on May 21. She commented further on the field trips that have been held at the Community Center. Ms. Dehn reviewed the upcoming events that will be held at the Community Center and Town Green, which included the Cross Community Players performances, an American Red Cross Blood Drive, the Muslim American Society of Minnesota Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 4 Eid up Adha Celebration, and the Little Dragons Chinese Immersion Summer Camp. Council Liaison’s Report: Council Member Hanson stated she had nothing to report. CONSENT BUSINESS Consent Business Motion made by Board Member Mielke, seconded by Board Member Helvey to approve the Consent Items as presented. A. Approve Minutes – May 18, 2023 Regular Meeting B. Approve Claims C. Special Use Permit – Missing Grace Foundation – MN Hope and Hearts Walk D. Accept Grant – Hennepin County Lifeguard Services Grant E. 2023 Catering Agreements Chair Lewis commended city staff for receiving a grant from Hennepin County for lifeguard services. He stated he really appreciated staff’s efforts to retain and invest in its lifeguards. Upon call for the question, on a voice vote, there were five ayes and no nays. Motion carried. OLD BUSINESS Old Business, Item A Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Peterson stated Maple Grove Community following the Community Garden discussion at the January 15, Garden Program – 2023 board meeting, staff have prepared an updated progress Progress Report report for the Board to review. In addition, staff toured three neighboring cities’ community gardens. During the tours, staff were educated on best practices and learned ways some cities are repurposing low-use park amenities for community garden space. Staff toured Lakeland Park in Brooklyn Park, Medley Park in Golden Valley, and Plymouth Community Garden located on Shenandoah Lane North. Ms. Peterson reported staff researched existing underutilized city-owned open spaces and park amenities throughout Maple Grove. A comparison matrix, seen on page 2 of the report, was Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 5 made to identify desired sites characteristics. After a review of the locations, amenities, and accessibility; five sites were identified as potential locations for the pilot community garden program. Charest Park, Donahue North Park, Fish Lake Woods Park, Kerber Park tennis court, and Lakeview Knolls Park. All five of the parks have adequate and accessible parking. Charest Park, Donahue North Park, and Fish Lake Woods Park were all identified as having large underutilized open space due to the discontinuation of the outdoor ice program at those sites. Kerber Park tennis court was identified after reviewing Golden Valley’s raised community garden program that is hosted inside an underutilized tennis court. Ms. Peterson explained Kerber Park tennis court is due for resurfacing and if used as a garden site, surface cracks could be repaired minimally to accommodate the raised garden without the cost of resurfacing the full court. The use of the existing perimeter fence would also be beneficial to garden management. For reference, Maple Grove’s current tennis court count exceeds the average number of courts at like communities by over 30%. Lakeview Knolls Park has large underutilized open space in the north quadrant of the park. The park has many onsite amenities, good sun exposure and soil, making it a potential location. Staff is seeking approval to move forward with community engagement efforts at the five potential community garden locations: Charest Park, Donahue North Park, Fish Lake Woods Park, Kerber Park, and Lakeview Knolls Park. Community engagement would take place in the month of July through August. Staff will use the information and public feedback gathered and put forth proposal options with cost estimates to the Board in September. Vice Chair Ferm stated the site that stands out to him as troublesome would be Fish Lake Woods Park because water was not available. He noted he was intrigued by the Kerber Park option. He explained it would be to the city’s advantage to keep the garden fencing more uniform in the community garden. Parks and Planning Superintendent Jaszewski explained water could be brought to Fish lake Woods Park but this would be at a higher cost because the park did not already have water. Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 6 Board Member Mielke thanked staff for the detailed report. He stated he agreed the fencing should be uniform surrounding the community garden. He believed this would provide better security as well. Board Member Helvey explained he would struggle with removing a tennis court at a park, such as the one at Kerber Park. He stated he liked the idea of a community garden at Lakeview Knolls Park. Vice Chair Ferm questioned if all five sites would be evaluated in order to recommend one for next spring. Ms. Peterson stated she wanted to hear from the community on which sites made the most sense. She indicated she may come with a recommendation for two sites. She noted there was definitely an interest in a community garden so she looked forward to hearing from the community further on this topic. Motion made by Vice Chair Ferm, seconded by Board Member Kuhnly to approve staff conducting community engagement at five potential community garden sites; Charest Park, Donahue North Park, Fish Lake Woods Park, Kerber Park, and Lakeview Knolls Park to identify a recommended location(s) for the community garden pilot project to be reviewed by Park Board at a future meeting. Chair Lewis asked if the timeline included a water line installation. Ms. Peterson reported this was the case, noting construction would begin this fall. Upon call for the question, on a voice vote, there were five ayes and no nays. Motion carried. Old Business, Item B Parks and Planning Superintendent Jaszewski stated staff has Lakeview Knolls Park been working with our consultant team to design and estimate Improvements – Phase 2 – the park improvement project at Lakeview Knolls. Bids for Receive Bids and Award Phase 2 encompass the site construction including the courts, Contract trails, parking lot, utilities, storm drainage, and fencing. Phase 3 will include the restroom buildings, picnic shelter, and interior court shade. The engineers estimated value for Phase 2 including Alternate 1, adding a concrete maintenance strip around the perimeter fence, was $1,509,400. There was great Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 7 interest in the project with a total of ten bids received and opened on June 6, 2023. Our consultant completed a review of the bids and are recommending to award the base bid plus Alternate 1 to New Look Construction Inc. Bids received within the competitive bidding process are listed in order of value (base bid plus alternate 1) as follows: New Look Contracting, Inc. …………………….$1,541,472.00 U.S. SiteWork, Inc. ………………………………….$1,547,216.56 Rachel Contracting, LLC. …………………………$1,624,876.00 Peterson Companies, Inc. ..…………………….$1,633,865.60 Sunram Construction, Inc. ….………………….$1,640,985.00 LinnCo, Inc. .……………………………………………$1,815,569.00 C. S. McCrossan Construction, Inc. ...………$1,883,606.80 Park Construction Company .………………….$1,903,107.11 Urban Companies, LLC ..………….……………..$1,923,589.00 Veit & Company, Inc. …….……………………….$1,949,156.75 Mr. Jaszewski reported the updated project estimate including the actual costs for phases one and two is an increase of approximately 1.3% of the most recent project estimate that the Board reviewed at their April 2023 meeting. Phase 1 ……………………................................$153,500 (Actual) Phase 2....................................................$1,541,472 (Bid) Phase 3 …………………………...........................$509,500 (Estimated) Contingency ……………...................................$99,557 (Estimated) Design, Eng, CA, Geotech ..........................$209,500 (Estimated) Project Total $2,513,529 Staff is recommending the Board award the Base Bid plus Alternate 1 to New Look Contracting Inc. in the amount of $1,541,472 for Phase 2 of the Lakeview Knolls Park improvement project. Funding for this project comes from the Park Development Fund. Following a positive review by the Board construction would begin after the 4th of July holiday and continue through October. Phase 3 will be reviewed by the Board at their July 2023 meeting. Chair Lewis asked if New Look Contracting has worked in the city previously. Mr. Jaszewski reported they have done work in the city, but he does not have experience with this company. Park Board Meeting June 15, 2023 Page 8 Motion made by Board Member Helvey, seconded by Board Member Mielke to receive bids for Phase 2 of the Lakeview Knolls Park Improvements and award a contract to New Look Contracting Inc., subject to final review by the Parks and Recreation Director and the City Attorney. Upon call for the question, on a voice vote, there were five ayes and no nays. Motion carried. NEW BUSINESS New Business No items to present. Adjournment Motion made by Board Member Mielke, seconded by Board Member Kuhnly to adjourn. Upon call for the question, on a voice vote, there were five ayes and no nays. Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 7:51 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Chuck Stifter, Director Parks and Recreation Board City of Maple Grove