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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks and Recreation - 04/15/1996 i i 1996 April 15 I MINUTES A Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Commission j CITY OF EDEN PRAIRIE AGENDA PARKS,RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION MONDAY,APRIL 15, 1996 7:00 P.M.CITY CENTER 8080 MITCHELL ROAD COUNCIL CHAMBERS COMMISSION MEMBERS: Claire Hilgcman, Chair, Bruce Bowman, Richard Brown, Don Jacobson,Vicki Kocning, David Kracum,John Wilson STUDENT MEMBERS: Mark Bremer, Emily Flanka i COMMISSION STAFF: Robert A. Lambert, Director of Parks, Recreation and Natural Rcsourccs: Stuart A. Fox, Manager of Parks and Natural Resources: Laurie Flelling, Manager of Recreation Services 1. ROLL CALL IL APPROVAL OF AGENDA III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES-April 1 1996 IV. PETITIONS,REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS ! A. N= l V. DEVELOPMENT PROP SA 1. A. Eden Prairic Presbyterian Church 3' B. Lil'etouch Corporate Headquarters $ V1. OLD BURIN FSS jtt 1 ' A. 1996 Work Plan(continued form April 1. 19961 VI1. NEW BUSINESS A. Policy on IlanL' L,Banners in Community Center B. Policy on Smoking,on Community Center Proncrtv C. Policy on Donatioas I Parks,Rccrcration and Natural Rcsourccs Commission April 16, 1996 Pabc 2 VI11. Reports of ManaLcr of Parks and Natural Resources A. Arbor Day Proclamation B. Arbor Day Walk C. Spring Park Clcan-up-un 1X. ADJOURNMENT I! } i y 2 APPROVED MINUTES PARKS,RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION MONDAV,APRIL 15,1996 7:00 P.M.CITY CENTER Council Chambers 8080 Mitchell Road COMMISSION MEMBERS: Claire Flilgeman,Chair: Bruce Bowman,Richard Brown,Don Jacobson,Vicki Koenig, David Kracum,John Wilson STUDENT MEMBERS: Mark Bremer, Emily Flanka COMMISSION STAFF: Robert A. Lambert, Director of Parks,Recreation and Facilities:Stuart Fox,City Foiester. Elinda Bahley,Recording Secretary 1. ROL],CALL The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.by Chair Hilgeman. All members were present. Il. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: Bowman moved,seconded by Koenig to approve the agenda as published. Motion carried 7-0. j K Ill. APPROVAL OF MINUTES-APRIL 1.1996 Koenig stated on Page 3,under Old Business,the last sentence should read, Lambert responded that the City was not ready to install any improvements in this park until it was determined... t , MOTION: Wilson moved,seconded by Brown to approve the Minutes of the April I, 1996 Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission as amended. Motion carried 6-0-1 with one abstention by Bowman. IV. PETITIONS.REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS A. None. V. DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL t 1 Unapproved Minutes Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 A. Eden Prairie Presbyterian Church Becky Lennon,representing Eden Prairie Presbyterian Church,reviewed the proposal for the relocation of the church from the current site on Lcona Road and Flying Cloud Drive to Eden Prairie Road and Pioneer Trail. The grading plan,site plan,elevation plan,and landscaping plan were reviewed. I The site plan shows a 21,050 square foot building with a walk-out on two sides. The proposal is to surround the parking area to screen it with six foot berms topped with a variety of flowering crab and blue spruce,and a variety j of bushes and trees on the property. Fox reviewed the Staff Report with the Commission. It was noted there is j only one large cottonwood that will be impacted with the grading. That's 100 percent tree loss and ends up being mitigated with the landscaping and the screening. A variety of coniferous material as well as some of the more common deciduous trees will be planted. The NURP pond that's scheduled to be constructed will be along Eden Prairie Road which will be north of the low area of the wetlands which is currently on the corner of Eden Prairie Road and Pioneer Trail. It will have to be approved suitable to handle the runoff from this site. The Engineering Department is investigating it now. The NURP pond will handle the runoff from the parking lot and the driveway areas. It has to be sized appropriately to handle the entire site. 3 Originally,when this site was proposed to be single family homes,an eight foot wide trail was proposed on the north side of Azalea Trail. The road is not being built as part of this plan and will probably never be extended. I Iowevcr, the Staff are recommending that a six foot wide sidewalk be constructed concurrent with the project to accommodate pedestrian traffic from Eden Prairie Road to their parking lot. t: The project was reviewed by the Planning Commission at the April 8, 1996 meeting and received a unanimous vote of approval. In addition,the project would be exempt from paying cash park fees as per the City code because this is a church, Wilson asked what will happen to the existing church site on Lcona Road. Lennon replied the site will become commercial property with 30,000 square feet of retail. i 2 I Unapproved Minutes Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 Brown was concerned about recommending cash park fees in case the property is sold in the future for residential. Fox replied it would be for a subdivision,and they would take up the issue at that time. Koenig was concerned about the configurations of the NURP pond. Fox replied the NURP pond is sized for the entire acreage on the site. It's planned to take off the runoff on the whole site. The only runoff at this time will be the parking lot. Brown expressed concern that there was no variance request for the building height of 38 feet when the maximum height is 30 feet on public zoning. Fox stated that more than likely it will be addressed as a variance request MOTION: Brown moved,seconded by Koenig to accept the plan as per the Staff recommendations for the Eden Prairie Presbyterian Church's new building. Motion carried 7-0. B. I irctouch Corporate Headquarters i Marshall Levin, representing Pope Association Inc., reviewed the development proposal for the new corporate headquarters of Lifetouch. This is a four story building from the lakeside elevation. It's primarily a brick and glass building with the upper story being made out of an exterior insulation system to give a different texture at the top. Lifetouch is a photography company that employs 4000 employees,and I 1 percent of them live in Eden Prairie. They have chosen Eden Prairie as their world headquarters. The project is a three phase plan in terms of a site plan. Phase I is the 32.800 square foot building. Phase I I will take place in about four or five years ! which will need an additional 167,000 square feet of building. The third t: parcel will be Phase III of the project.The building is being viewed as a fornial structure with a formal entrance. There are significant reformations s of the slope down to the water in the back. Fox reviewed the Staff Report with the Commission. Currently,the site does not require the removal of tiny significant trees as defined by City ordinance. The site has been used for several years for ctoragc of excess fill that was excavated from other parts of the original PUD. Therefore,no mitigation is required for removal of significant trees. 3 Y Unapproved Minutes Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 Fox explained the background as to why the project has a rather extensive amount of landscaping proposed. The plant schedule shows a total of 460 caliper inches oftrces being planted on the site. Coniferous material include Black Hills spruce and Colorado spruce. Deciduous trees to be planted include green ash,basswood,swamp white oak,redmond linden,river birch, black ash and silver maple. There is an extensive amount of foundation and landscape decorative planting that includes flowering shrubs, Staff believes the landscaping plan submitted is suitable for the site and will accomplish the i desired effect. The NURP pond is to the cast and is a two stage pond that was created. All the drainage from this particular site would be channeled into that NURP pond and would make its way into Smetana Lake. There is an eight-foot bituminous trail that was originally built by Vantage and for some reason there was not an casement given to the site. The developer has come up with the appropriate documentation and the City will give the site a permanent trail casement for people to walk as well as for the site to be maintained as a public casement point. Staff recommended that at the time of Phase 11 a five foot wide concrete sidewalk be constructed along Viking Drive to handle pedestrian traffic. It would also have to meander around some of the existing light poles in order to be installed. This project was reviewed by the Planning Commission on April 8, 1996 and received unanimous approval. Staff does recommend approval of this project. i Brown was concerned about the DNR accepting the plan based on Phase I and II. Fox responded that part of it is because the parking deck and the site j from Smetana Lake would have to be modified. Levin noted that this has to do with how much or any of the parking ramp should be visible from the lake. The original plan was approved for two buildings,one being a 10 story and the other one a 14 story building. They didn't need that extensive development for this site and that's why they want three buildings. f Kracum expressed concern about the DNR being comfortable with a 100 foot setback instead of the required 200 foot setback. Fox stated that Staff is comfortable with the 100 foot setback and explained wily. Koenig asked if the Smetana Lake improvement project fits in the CIP with Mile Creek Centennial Lake. Lambert noted the DNR has denied the requests for the improvement project on Smetana Lake as requested. The DNR decided that the value of the wetland being created is not a valuable as i 4. d Q i Unapproved Minutes { Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 i i the wetland being lost. Staff is still supporting the Watershed District to put in an outlet control structure to control the elevation for the lake and manage it more for flood control. That is still in the review process. Bowman was concerned about the setback,and the comment in the Staff Report indicating that the seven story parking deck is not consistent with any j plans, He commented that there is reason here not to consider the setback i waiver. This means the parking lot is taller than the adjoining office building. He wants to make sure that if they accept the lesser setback in lieu of tightening up the parking structure,the Commission remembers it later on during the next phase. 1 Koenig expressed concern about the two-tier NURP pond by the billboard j having a lot of sedimentation in it already, Fox replied that the NURP ponds need to be cleaned out based on how much sedimentation takes place in them. It depends on how much solid comes out of the adjacent street and parking lot, hie noted that the original NURP ponds were sized for the entire project and the entire site was not developed. Discussion ensued regarding the condition in the Staff Report stating that the proposed setback is 100 feet,and the setback waiver should only be granted if this site plan is changed to reduce the height of the parking dcek on Phase i 11 and 111. It was noted that the Commission basically will not be responsible for the height of the parking deck in Phase 11 and 111. I-lilgeman commented she's not happy with all the waivers but understands that these decisions were made a long time ago and the tradeoffs were substantial on both sides. She supported the project. MOTION: Brown moved,seconded by Jacobson to approve the Lifctouch Corporate Headquarters as per the Staff recommendations. Motion carried 7-0. V1. OLD BUSINESS , A. 1996 Work Plan(continued from April 1. 1996) The Commission was referred to a memo dated April 4, 1996,from Robert A.Lambert,Director of Parks,Recreation and Facilities. Lambert noted that this Work Plan can be either modified or approved as per the way it's written. Some things have already been initiated. There is a Council Workshop in the next couple of months that's going to be addressing 5 1 i Unapproved Minutes Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 i Work Plans that they request from Commissions. The Commission should select a member to represent them and report on the Work Plan at a regular Council meeting. Discussion ensued regarding the different projects in the Work Plan,as well as target dates for each one. The Commission also discussed the inability to I interpret the City Survey and how to avoid this for other future City Surveys. { Lambert indicated they would set up a committee with two or three Commissioners and two Staff members. Then they would bring in the I consultant and ask him to interpret the results. Discussion continued regarding the recreational programs needed in Eden Prairie during the summer months or after school when both parents arc working.Items#1,#3, and #6 require interaction sub-committees between the Staff and the Commission. I Brown indicated that the Senior Task Force is setting up a training session on May 4 and seeking volunteers to do phone surveys. lie recommended that the City participate. MOTION: Jacobson moved, seconded by Koenig to accept the 1996 Commission Work Plan dated April 4, 1996. Motion carried 7-0. 1 Hilgcman asked for volunteers to serve on a committee to meet with the survey consultant that did the recent survey to talk about the results of it. Jacobson and Wilson volunteered, and Hilgcman volunteered to be an x alternate. t Lambert asked for a volunteer to work with Stu Fox on helping to develop 1 a Management Plan for the conservation areas. Koenig and Flilgeman volunteered. Fox noted this would be for about six or seven months and meet every other week to start. VI1. NEW BUSINESS A. Policy on lianging Banners in Community Center Staffrefened the Commission to a memo dated April 1, 1996.from Robert A. Lambert, Director of Parks,Recreation and Facilities.and a letter from Pete Rose,Team Manager 1995/1996 Pec Wee"A". Lambert indicated the Eden Prairie Pee Wee"A"hockey team won the State Tournament this year and brought home a "Championship Banner". The team manager,Pete Rose,has requested to display the banner permanently l 6 Unapproved Minutes Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 at the Community Center. Staff believes the City should display the banner and has considered other Eden Prairie users of the Community Center who have potential to obtain championship banners. The main groups include Eden Prairie High School Hockey and Swim Teams, Hockey Association, Figure Skating Club,and Foxjct Swim Club. Discussion ensued regarding the guidelines required in order to display the banners. Hilgeman asked if a limit could be put on the amount of years a banner can be displayed. Lambert indicated that when the wall fills up the oldest banner will most likely be removed. Jacobson was concerned about where the Little League would display aâ–ºbanner if they won a championship. Lambert suggested in a future building that would serve that sport in Miller Park. MOTION: Wilson moved, seconded by Brown to accept the Staff recommendations for banners at the Community Center. Motion carried 7- 0-0. B. Policy on Smoking on Community Center Property Staff referred the Commission to a memo dated April 9, 1996 from Robert A.Lambert,Director of Parks,Recreation and Facilities;and a memo dated March 21, 1995 from Jennifer Inz and Ric Rosow. 1 Lambert indicated this is a request to both the Parks Commission and the fi City Council to review the question on whether or not the City wants to initiate action to restrict smoking on the property adjacent to the Community Center. Staff has received many call from people suggesting the City is not presenting the right image. The people do not like entering the Community Y Center through it haze of smoke, and feel it's not a healthful image for children. There arc also many people who would be offended if smoking a a was prohibited completely. =r' Hilgcmaan commented that a policy to prohibit smoking would not be possible because there would be problems trying to enforce it. Children arc very educated about the dangers of smoking and are not going to feel any different by seeing a bunch of people smoking. Wilson suggested a designated area for smoking toward the back entrance. Lambert stated he does not want to put up signs that they can't enforce,and make up rules that they don't intend to enforce. 7 rig i Unapproved Minutes Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 Hilgeman was concerned about how many people would be respectful enough to go to the back and smoke. She suggested one small sign to refrain from smoking at the front door and smoke at the back door. Jacobson suggested using large ashtrays because the ones presently there get full too quickly. MOTION: Brown moved,seconded by Koenig to attempt no smoking by the Community Center entrance by posting a sign that Staff will develop that asks people to smoke at a designated smoking area at the back entrance. Motion curried 6-0-1 with one abstention by Kracum. C. Policy on Donations Staff referred the Commission to a memo dated April 16, 1996,from Robert A.Lambert,Director of Parks,Recreation and Facilities. Lambert reviewed the guidelines as outlined in the memo indicating that it makes sense to have a policy that Staff can tell the donors what the process is. The City has to get things in writing when given gifts and be aware of any strings attached. Staff believes there should be more of a process to follow. Hilgeman asked if any substantial gifts have been given to the City as a result of the"Excellence Through Giving'gift book. Lambert indicated there were several groups that requested the book and used it, but believes the City would have received the gifts without the book. s Staff recommended the City have a written policy regarding donations that the Parks Commission review. This would then be sent to the City Council. MOTION: Bowman moved. seconded by Brown for approval of the recommendations per the Staff Report for a written policy on donations. Motion curried 7-0. V111. Reports of Manager of Parks and Natural Resources A. Arbor Day.Proclamation Fox indicated this was an FYI item. 8 Unapproved Minutes Parks,Recreation and Natural Resources Commission April 15, 1996 B. Arbor Day Walk Fox indicated this was an FYI item. C. Spring Park Clean-uu Fox indicated this was an FYI item. IX. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Jacobson moved,seconded by Brown to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 7-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:09 p.m. a 9