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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 10/04/2022 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP & OPEN PODIUM TUESDAY, October 4, 2022 CITY CENTER 5:00 – 6:25 PM, HERITAGE ROOMS 6:30 – 7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER CITY COUNCIL: Council Members Kathy Nelson, Mark Freiberg, PG Narayanan, and Lisa Toomey CITY STAFF: City Manager Rick Getschow, Police Chief Matthew Sackett, Fire Chief Scott Gerber, Public Works Director Robert Ellis, Community Development Director Julie Klima, Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, Administrative Services/HR Director Alecia Rose, Communications Manager Joyce Lorenz, and City Attorney Maggie Neuville Workshop - Heritage Rooms I and II (5:30) I. ROUND LAKE BUILDING UPDATE Lotthammer distributed building materials to attendees and said given the current age of the building, it should have been replaced a year to two earlier. Lotthammer said park building rentals were reviewed and the Parks Commission meeting on October 3, 2022. When rental buildings were ranked in order, Round Lake came in at zero rentals and the most recently updated building at Staring Lake came in at 61 rentals. The pavilion at Round Lake is not counted as a part of the rental. Lotthammer explained that the Staring Lake building was in similar shape to the Round Lake when it was rebuilt a few years ago and since rebuilding, rentals have increased. It can be expected the same would occur with the new Round Lake building. Lotthammer showed renderings of the proposed building and described the view from the main room faces Round Lake The building will have ample seating and sun shelters. Lotthammer said he believes sun shelters will be an added benefit to Round Lake, they are well received at other locations. Lotthammer described seating along the side of the building for people to enjoy a cup of coffee or watch their children on the playground. A seat wall will provide an additional level for people to enjoy an outdoor concert. Nelson asked if there was parking near the Round Lake rental building to accommodate larger events. Lotthammer answered there is a lot of parking space, much of it currently underutilized. Narayanan inquired if anything was changing from the current parking layout. Lotthammer answered it was not. City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 2 Nelson inquired about wheelchair accessibility. Lotthammer explained the layout of accessible parking spots near the building entrance. Lotthammer described the elevation of the new Round Lake building as well as design features including a pergola and metal aspects with cutouts for added privacy. Lotthammer mentioned the garage doors on the building will look different than in the rendering. The doors will still have large windows but will not open and close in order to better control energy efficiency. Freiberg asked if athletic associations would store equipment in the new building as they do in the current building. Lotthammer explained they have been in contact with the associations over the past year to discuss current and future practices. One possible arrangement would be to construct a centrally located storage building and have associations pay for portions of storage space based on use. Freiberg asked about storage availability in existing City buildings. Lotthammer explained that current storage spaces are at capacity. Toomey asked if there was a pitch to the roof and Lotthammer explained there was. Lotthammer also discussed the green element to the roof. Nelson asked if solar panels were going to be installed on the building. Lotthammer responded they would be. Narayanan asked how many people would be able to fit at the tables in the rendering. Lotthammer explained a banquet style set up could accommodate 50 or more people. A classroom or meeting seating arrangement can seat closer to 70 or 75 people. Lotthammer noted that the building would have one less window and an added fireplace which differed from the rendering. Narayanan asked if the new building would have projection screens. Lotthammer said the building would have two projection screens as well as a kitchenette to support light cleaning and cooking. Lotthammer explained how warming houses do not tend to make successful year-round rental facilities. Given the building’s proximity to the beach and splash pad, an added benefit would be allowing access to restrooms and changing facilities without allowing access to the main building. Technology allows for doors to be locked and unlocked strategically. Narayanan asked if there would be counter space in the Round Lake building, similar what is in the Cambria Room at the Eden Prairie Community Center (EPCC). Lotthammer explained that counter space will be comparable to the Cambria Room at the EPCC and the Lakeview City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 3 Room at Staring Lake. Narayanan inquired about the warming room. Lotthammer replied that there would be windows and countertop space so parents could watch their child skate. Narayanan inquired about an additional room on the rendering and Lotthammer identified it as a mechanical room. Toomey asked if Staff were to be on site for building rentals. Lotthammer explained when building access was controlled with keys, a Staff person would need to be on site to lock and unlock doors. As with the Staring Lake building, Round Lake building doors will be on a timer. Doors will unlock when a rental begins and lock when it concludes. Door control technology saves on Staff cost. Nelson asked if there would be drinking fountains at the Round Lake building. Lotthammer responded that there would be interior and exterior drinking fountains. Narayanan asked if it was considered to have vending machines at the building as a source of revenue. Lotthammer responded in the past it hasn’t worked well to have vending machines in public areas since they are highly susceptible to vandalism. Lotthammer also explained that for rentals, people tend to bring their own drinks. Lotthammer continued to review interior building details including polished concrete floors and wood paneling which would aid the acoustics of the room. Narayanan asked if there would be built in speakers, Lotthammer answered that sound will come out of the television but there will be no speaker system. Nelson asked if the City would encourage other businesses to have meetings at the Round Lake building. Lotthammer confirmed that businesses could rent the space, the capacity of the building is comparable to the Staring Lake building. Lotthammer continued to detail changing rooms, restrooms, solar panels, drainage of the green roof and striped parking. Lotthammer said electrical wiring will be installed to support possible future EV charging stations. Narayanan asked if additional parking would be added. Lotthammer responded additional parking would not be added. Lotthammer described sustainability aspects of the Round Lake building which would include solar panels, a green roof, and high efficiency heating and cooling equipment. Nelson confirmed with Lotthammer that windows would be fixed in place with doors on either side to access the patio. City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 4 Narayanan asked about the possibility of adding trees to shade the lawn area that gets very hot. Nelson suggested a more specific spot where trees could be planted. Lotthammer agreed that trees could be added in the future for additional shade. Lotthammer listed additional building materials as metal, cement fiber, mass timber, sealed polished concrete, and rubber flooring. Narayanan asked if there would be cameras installed to monitor the building. Lotthammer replied yes, comparable to what is installed at the Staring Lake building. Exterior cameras have nearly 360-degree mobility and interior cameras would be strategically placed. Narayanan asked if there would be wireless internet available at the Round Lake building and if there would be a cost associated with using it. Lotthammer responded that Round Lake Park has had free wireless internet for the last 5 years or so. The current wireless internet signal would cover the building. Lotthammer estimated the cost and what is budgeted at about $2.5 million. $1.2 million would come from the Capital Reinvestment Fund which is meant to be used to replace something like a park building, that has reached the end of its useful life. Because this project is doing more than just a basic replacement of the building, the other half of the funds would be coming from the Park Improvement Fund. Lotthammer said the project was presented to the Parks Commission on October 3, 2022. It will go out on an electronic bidding system and bidding for the project will open on October 25, 2022. Narayanan inquired if the construction would impact the event on July 4, 2023. Lotthammer explained that the building would be a construction site, but the area would be fenced. Lotthammer stated he isn’t concerned it will affect the event as people have their back to that area most of the time. Nelson inquired if the whole building could be rented for the Fourth of July event, as this could bring money into the Parks Construction Fund. Lotthammer said rentals for all park buildings, except for the Riley Barn, open after the first of the year. The Round Lake building would be rented out, but it wouldn’t be a good idea to rent it for the Fourth of July. Lotthammer said they have a cost estimate for the project. Bid opening for the project is October 25, 2022, with possible bid review at the Parks Commission on November 7, 2022, and Council Meeting on November 15, 2022. The project would move forward if a bid were awarded to a contractor. Construction would begin in March 2023 with substantial completion expected by September 15, 2023, and occupancy to follow in October 2023. City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 5 Narayanan noted it is unfortunate that they project couldn’t be completed by July 4, 2023. Lotthammer explained that having too tight of a timeline it would increase price. The benefit of awarding the bid soon would be the contractor could begin ordering materials. Freiberg asked how many annual building rentals Lotthammer anticipates. Lotthammer estimated as many rentals as Staring Lake has if not more. Lotthammer added that park buildings can be used for City programming and recreational activities in addition to private rentals. Nelson noted there would be a handful of nice buildings to rent in the City, near a lake, at a reasonable cost. Lotthammer said they want this building to be affordable and accessible for people. Nelson asked if people from outside Eden Prairie can rent the building and if Eden Prairie residents have priority. Lotthammer replied that residents have priority. Freiberg asked who created the renderings. Lotthammer replied that the landscape and architecture company ISG created the renderings. ISG will be used for the Miller Park Indoor Court Facility renderings as well. II. MILLER INDOOR COURT FACILITY UPDATE Lotthammer said the purpose is to look at building an indoor court facility at Miller Park where outdoor courts are located currently. Lotthammer showed a current photo of the outdoor tennis courts, basketball court and plaza area. Lotthammer explained challenges with soil quality on site and trying to plan maintenance since the site is at the end of its lifespan. Lotthammer said ample parking already exists which is favorable for an indoor facility with additional courts. Parking for the outdoor features of the park wouldn’t be affected by an indoor facility. Miller Park is ideal for an indoor court facility because infrastructure already exists. A project at a minimally developed site would cost much more. Lotthammer said two tennis courts, six pickleball courts, mechanical rooms, a lobby, restrooms and small locker room could fit on the site. Lotthammer reiterated the current site being at the end of its lifespan and a major overhaul needing to take place. Lotthammer explained an indoor facility lengthens the lifespan of a court surface given the Minnesota climate. Lotthammer said the facility will be accessible and affordable for people who want to play tennis or pickleball indoors, but do not have the income capability to join a private club. Nelson asked if there would be seating because part of the fun of the sport is watching. Lotthammer said there is a window lobby in the court facility, but the nature of the facility is for scheduled rentals. City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 6 Nelson asked if a group could rent all six courts for a tournament and if so, seating would be needed. Lotthammer answered that there is a lounge feel to the space but in terms of pricing and value, unnecessary space would need to be cut. Lotthammer said niceties may need to be sacrificed in order to make the project fundable. Lotthammer explained that the EPCC is inundated with pickleball demand in the wintertime and having other indoor courts would allow the community center gym to be more of a community and family gym. Relieving pickleball pressure at the EPCC would be a benefit, and pickleball courts could be used for other activities. Residents have expressed indoor courts support lifelong health and wellness, especially for seniors who live here year-round. Lotthammer said that pickleball and tennis have continued to grow. Lotthammer explained that pickleball was in the news lately and Lifetime was looking to convert space into pickleball courts. Eden Prairie has incrementally added pickleball courts since 2012 and in being the first to have courts, people travel from elsewhere to play here. Surrounding cities then add courts and we can assess demand. Lotthammer explained that we don’t want to overbuild, but we know the demand for more is there. Lotthammer said that we don’t necessarily want to think of a tennis court as potential for 4 pickleball courts. The demand for tennis is there even if we don’t hear about it as much and there is a crossover between pickleball players and tennis players. Toomey said she thought pickleball was popular with an older demographic. Lotthammer said that pickleball is growing in the youth population and for those in their twenties and thirties. Lotthammer explained how seniors tend to play pickleball in the morning, courts are less busy in the afternoons. Some seniors come back to play in the evening, but courts are more utilized by younger adult players and families. Tennis players and pickleball players may play at different times. Lotthammer explained how an indoor facility is a benefit to pickleball players because the sport is sensitive to wind and weather. An indoor facility also provides protection from the sun. Lotthammer visited the University of Minnesota facility and the more comparable City owned Williston facility in Minnetonka. Williston has five tennis courts, and they converted a basketball court into pickleball courts. Lotthammer said courts at Williston are utilized so demand isn’t of concern. Lotthammer said private pickleball courts are being rented at a rate of $40-$50 per hour. At Williston, tennis rentals exceed expenses by about $600,000 per year. Nelson asked if we would have similar types of rental fees. Lotthammer replied that the market supports those rates, but the $40 range is a little high. You can always have four people playing on a court at a time so the fee can be divided by four. City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 7 Lotthammer said the cost estimate from the architect came in higher than anticipated. $4 million was budgeted for the indoor court facility and the estimate was at least double that. Multiple factors contributed to the high cost. Lotthammer said that the time wasn’t right to build the facility, but the project could be revisited in four to five months, taking aspects learned from the initial study to reduce cost. Lotthammer doesn’t want to sacrifice playability, but reasonable decisions will need to be made. Lotthammer said a construction management firm may be brought in to ensure accurate pricing. Freiberg asked the opinion of Lotthammer and Ellis on the concrete shortage. Ellis said the process to manufacture the cement is intensive and Lotthammer added low water levels last year made transportation difficult. Toomey asked about the cost associated with hiring a construction management firm. Lotthammer responded it would cost a few thousand dollars to have them as a consultant. Lotthammer indicated the confidence their insight would provide one way or the other would make it worthwhile. Lotthammer said the courts at Miller Park aren’t playable in their current condition, something will need to be done. Lotthammer presented the option to resurface courts which is cost effective but only a 3-year solution. Lotthammer presented a second option to convert one tennis court into four pickleball courts. The second option would provide good quality pickleball courts right away in the spring. Lotthammer said if another exercise is conducted and an indoor court facility at Miller Park is not a fundable project, the next most affordable recommendation would be to make Miller Park look like the Staring Lake courts. The outdoor option would include a tennis court, basketball court, and pickleball courts. Lotthammer said because it is a community park, he does not want it dominated by one user group. While this would not provide an indoor amenity, it would be an affordable option. Toomey asked how many tennis courts are at Staring Lake. Lotthammer responded Staring Lake has eight pickleball courts, one tennis court and one basketball court. Lotthammer said the Miller Park outdoor space could have six pickleball courts, one tennis court and one basketball court and likely a gathering space with shade structures. Lotthammer said he will be back to discuss both the Round Lake and Miller Park projects in the future. Open Podium - Council Chamber (6:30) II. OPEN PODIUM City Council Workshop Minutes October 4, 2022 Page 8 III. ADJOURNMENT Minutes submitted by Dana Swanson, Facilities Coordinator.