Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission

South St. Paul Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Minutes of August 7, 2018 The Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission meeting was called to order by Rich Dippel at 6:00 p.m. at Central Square Community Center. Members Present: Rich Dippel, Mike Lindamood, Michael Heidelberger, Lori Miller Members Absent: Josh Dormady, Ron Morgan Others Present: Chris Esser, Shannon Young 1. INTRODUCTIONS – None 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Rich Dippel called meeting to order. Motion by Lori Miller and second by Michael Heidelberger to approve the Minutes of June 12, 2018. 4 Yays. 0 Nays. Motion Passed 3. OLD BUSINESS 3A. Recreation Program Updates – Kaposia Days, Youth Programs & Camps Ms. Young noted the Adult Softball Kaposia Days tournament went well. There were a couple complaints of not enough parking at Kaposia Landing. The Northview Pool beach party was well attended. Summer programs finished up last week and football signups are taking place. 3B. Youth Football Program Structure – User Evaluation Mr. Esser noted there will be an evaluation sent to football families on flag versus tackle and the other elements of the program. The parents will have the opportunity to evaluate before the season and then again post season. Results will be brought back to the commission for discussion. 3C. Kaposia Landing – Draintile Installation, Drinking Fountain, Lion Shelter Mr. Esser noted the drain tile is installed. There are some areas that need to be re-seeded. There is some irrigation issues that are being attended to by our Public Works. The drinking fountain water line is ready for the installation outside the north entrance of the Dog Park. The fountain will be installed soon. Dakota County will be installing a trail node adjacent to the fountain in the future. The Lions shelter is complete. Mr. Esser noted special thanks to the Lions for the donation. 3D. McMorrow Field Renovation – Tentative Opening Mr. Esser reported the South St. Paul Youth Soccer Association held their end of season jamboree on the new fields at McMorrow. They wanted to host Monday through Sunday. The city council and the youth soccer association agreed to only use the complex on Saturday and Sunday of the jamboree. The tentative grand opening will be weather dependent in May, 2019. 3E. Doug Woog Arena Updates-SSP Youth Hockey Enrichment & Recruitment Program The SSP Youth Hockey Association, Blades N Motion, and Kids Choice are teaming up to introduce kids to skating. The kids will be bussed to Doug Woog Arena and will be given the opportunity to put on skates with instruction from Blades N Motion. City Council waived eight hours of ice rental to provide our youth the on ice experience in partnership with the community groups. 3F.CIP Projects – Specialty Off-Leash Dog Area Mr. Esser noted the smaller, Specialty Off-Leash area is open. Mr. Esser received two calls about the new area with one being positive and one disappointed. Ms. Young is working on signage for the new area. 3G. Grants and Donations - ELF Grant, SHIP Grant, Seidl’s Lake Bonding Bill, AEDs Mr. Esser explained grant funding that has been successfully acquired from a variety of sources. The Environmental Legacy Fund (ELF) awarded $612,700 from Dakota County to assist with Kaposia Landing Phase 2. The Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP) grant is $30,000 also award by Dakota County for design services for the Wakota Trailhead project at the Boat Launch/Community Garden/Compost Site location. The city was also successful in receiving State Bonding Bill Funding of $780,000 for the Seidl’s Lake lift station project, after three attempts thanks to the support of our local legislators. Finally, the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 639 has donated $4,200 for the purchase and installation of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) for the park buildings at Kaposia Landing, Veterans Field, and McMorrow Field. The commission members complemented staff for authoring the grant applications to seek this funding. 3H. Park Assignments/Visit Reports None reported. 4. NEW BUSINESS 4A. New Park Signs Mr. Esser presented the samples for the new park entrance signs being considered and informed the commission that the city council has requested to be part of the review process before final design is decided. The commissioners supported the direction staff is going with the design and emphasized they would like to see the new Park & Recreation logo on them. 4B. Kaposia Landing Phase 2 Priorities Mr. Esser presented ideas for Phase 2 of Kaposia Landing including: additional parking, roadway lighting on the west side of the road, trail connections, and a play structure. All elements may be able to be funded by the ELF Grant received from Dakota County. A Phase 3 would incorporate the remaining Master Plan elements, most notably the group picnic and performance shelter, when funding allows. 4C. Bromley Rink Discussions Mr. Esser reported there has been discussions at the city council level on the future of Bromley Rink. The Public Works Department cannot flood and maintain another season with the current boards and site conditions. Discussions have leaned toward removing the boards and pavement and flooding the rink on the bare ground. There will be a neighborhood meeting to discuss the future of the Bromley site at a future commission meeting. 5. Other Business – Commissioner Resignation and Appointment Mr. Esser reported that Matthew Helwig has resigned from the board due moving residence outside of South St. Paul. Discussion has begun on how and when to fill the vacancy. 6. ADJOURNMENT- Meeting adjourned. Next meeting is September 11, 2018. Respectfully submitted, Shannon Young