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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity and School Facility Use Advisory Committee - 11/16/2011 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY AND SCHOOL FACILITY USE ADVISORY COMMITTEE WED., NOVEMBER 16, 2011 7:00 PM, EDEN PRAIRIE HIGH SCHOOL, Room 232 17185 Valley View Road COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Derek Gunderson (Chair), Suzanne Kutina, John Bergstrand, Farida Kathawalla, Lisa Lieberman, Kathy Nelson STAFF: Terri Johnson, Director of Community Education Jay Lotthammer, Director of Parks and Recreation Laurie Obiazor, Manager of Recreation Services Wendy Sevenich, Community Center Manager Mike Grant, High School Activities Director Cheryl Bridge, Facilities Coordinator Ricardo Jones, High School Activities Coordinator Heidi Wojahn, Recorder I. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Chair Gunderson called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. Lotthammer, Sevenich, and Committee Members Farida Kathawalla and Kathy Nelson were absent. Obiazor gave a status update on the Recreation Supervisor position. Ten candidates from a pool of 214 applicants were interviewed. Final interviews for the top three will take place Friday. Obiazor explained CSFAC was formed to effectively manage facility usage, programming and monitor fees and charges. She was the initial staff liaison to the committee and is now serving in the interim staff person until a new Recreation Supervisor is hired. She will ensure a smooth staffing transition. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: Kutina moved, seconded by Lieberman, to approve the agenda. Motion carried 4-0. III. MINUTES Obiazor requested the following changes be made to the March 23, 2011 minutes: Item IV.C.1. – change “lacrosse/soccer” to “turf” in the second sentence. Change “soccer and lacrosse” to “turf-users” in the second to the last sentence. Add the word “park” before “bond” in the last sentence. Item IV.G. – remove the slash typo before the second to last sentence in the first paragraph. Add “Ed” after “Community” in the first sentence of the third paragraph. CITY AND SCHOOL FACILITY USE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES November 16, 2011 Page 2 MOTION: Bergstrand moved, seconded by Kutina, to approve the March 23, 2011 minutes as amended. Motion carried 3-0-1 with Lieberman abstaining. IV. ITEMS OF BUSINESS A. VICE CHAIR SELECTION Kutina volunteered to serve as Vice Chair. MOTION: Bergstrand moved, seconded by Liebermann, to elect Kutina as Committee Vice Chair. Motion carried 4-0. B. SUMMER FIELD USAGE OVERVIEW Jones reported the turf fields saw a lot of use. There are always new groups looking for space. The grass fields are avoided as much as possible, but Eden Prairie Soccer Club does use them. PegHead Records requested to hold a big rock concert on the stadium turf. The request was denied; the turf is not intended for that type of use. Grant added Central Middle School (CMS) was also considered, but the potential amount of turf damage right before the start of the school year wasn’t warranted. They do rent to for-profit groups, but those groups are lower on the priority list and are charged at a higher rate. When the bubble and turf fields first opened, there was much heavier use by outside groups. Now 95 percent of usage is by Eden Prairie groups. Kutina inquired how the turf is cleaned. Jones replied a tractor-type sweeper is used. Gunderson reported that at the last Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission meeting he suggested Eden Prairie athletic associations use the Hennepin County youth sports grant application process to pursue funding for field turf. Grant stated one of the best things they’ve ever done is to install turf fields. It helps the City save wear and tear on its fields. Turf allows for far more days of usage per season and multiple uses per day as well as an earlier start in the season. If new turf fields are constructed, he doesn’t foresee any problems filling vacancies. Another grant proposal idea is to light Field A. The Football Association has requested this due to increased demand. Obiazor said CSFAC could support this issue and the City could help by making sure the grant is completed correctly. The request would need to go through the District since the field is District-owned property. Grant said the effort could be spearheaded in his office. Gunderson suggested inviting representatives from all the associations to a meeting rather than approaching them individually. The location being considered for turf fields is Flying Cloud with the next choice being Miller Park. The sand there is not holding up well. Obiazor said this grant cannot be used at Flying Cloud because the City leases the property from the Metropolitan Airport Commission. What they need to do is find out what the community needs are (capital, equipment, City, School, etc.) and prioritize the list so it can be determined how to best utilize the grant application process. CITY AND SCHOOL FACILITY USE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES November 16, 2011 Page 3 Obiazor said the City hosted a number of softball and baseball tournaments this summer including the Gopher Classic and National Fastpitch. There is a new maintenance supervisor with a golf course background who has been doing an outstanding job. The fields have never looked better. The plan for 2012 is to meet with all the specific groups that use City facilities. A strategic approach will be used to learn about each group’s standard operating procedures, numbers, and logistics and to gain a different perspective on how each athletic association operates. This should help with field usage and getting on the right course for the new year. Grant noted logistics are affected by the different approaches sports take. Some kids that used to be multi-sport players are being funneled into one sport so numbers for kids going out for a particular sport at the high school level are down. Kutina added she has noticed specialization at an early age. Kids are learning one position really well and are not able to play other positions on a team. C. REVIEW SITE PLAN FOR FLYING CLOUD EXPANSION - Obiazor Copies of the Flying Cloud expansion site plan were distributed. This project is being funded with $1.2 million from the 2005 park bond referendum. It consists of two baseball fields, one 80-foot and one 90-foot, two multi-use grass turf fields, parking accommodations for both, and overflow parking for tournaments or large area events. There will be no play on any of the fields in 2012 with light usage anticipated in spring 2013. Once established, the fields should see more usage in summer 2013. Once these fields become available, the baseball fields in the main complex will be converted into soccer fields. Obiazor will report back in the spring on the 2012-13 season once usage has been determined based on age group, in-house, and travel needs. Gunderson reported one City ballfield will be shut down at all times on a rotating basis to allow for regeneration. D. SUNDAY NIGHT OPEN GYM OVERVIEW Jones reported from 2003 to 2006 there was open gym in the Activity Center on Sunday nights during the winter months. Grant said the program was discontinued partly due to budget reductions. Supervisors were paid out of the activities budget, while fees collected went to the general fund. More monitoring is required when groups of people come from outside the community. Less than ten percent of soccer attendees at open dome on Friday nights are from Eden Prairie. Parental supervision has also been an issue. Bridge said there used to be open gym at Oak Point, but there weren’t enough users. E. PROGRAM BROCHURES (COMMUNITY ED & CITY) Johnson said Community Ed no longer mails brochures for youth programs. They have found target marketing (going through the schools and sending flyers home in student backpacks) to be more cost effective. They have made a concerted effort to have their information available earlier in the spring when parents are making decisions about summer programming. About 85-90 percent of registrations occur online. Bridge added their adult catalog is still direct mailed. CITY AND SCHOOL FACILITY USE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES November 16, 2011 Page 4 Obiazor said the City and Community Ed published a joint brochure at one time when the population was much smaller. Given the different operating and registration procedures and policies, it is too confusing to combine information from the two agencies. The City will be launching its new website, edenprairie.org, in the first quarter of 2012. Although the park and recreation brochure is available electronically, there is still demand for a printed brochure. The combined spring/summer brochure is direct mailed to every household via bulk mail while customized lists are used to send email blasts. Supplemental day camp brochures are sent home in backpacks before the end of the school year. Phone-in registration has been eliminated. Residents can register via walk-in, mail-in, or online. The City and Community Ed have a good partnership in that they help each other if people confuse the entities when making inquiries into offerings. F. 2012 HENNEPIN YOUTH SPORTS GRANT APPLICATION - Obiazor In September, notification was sent to all youth associations regarding this opportunity. At that time, only baseball was able to commit. The City submitted two grant applications on behalf of The Baseball Association: 1) to add a batting cage and covered dugouts at Franlo Park and 2) to add a double batting cage and covered dugouts to the Staring Lake/Cummins Grill fields. The Franlo Park project is at a smaller facility and impacts a smaller group of people, so the Staring Lake/Cummins Grill project has a better chance of receiving funding. The City expects to know by the end of the year whether the grants are awarded. These are matching grants with the other half of funding coming from EPBA. The City will serve as fiscal agent, if the grant(s) come through, and will continue to work with the youth athletic associations on future grant opportunities. G. OTHER Gunderson reported Round Lake is in the beginning stages of being renovated. The preliminary layout from the architects includes expanding and splitting up the play areas (adding a splash pad larger than the one at Miller Park) and condensing the softball fields and extending them to 320 feet to be more competitive for adults. As a result, the fields at Lake Riley will be extended to 280 feet and be used as full-time youth fields. All three Round Lake fields will be lit with a projected availability of 2013. The entrance at Round Lake will be reoriented and a roundabout will be added. The skate park will see improvements, the basketball court will be shifted towards the volleyball courts, and the two hockey rinks will be maintained. There will be a building for both indoor and outdoor events, and a few amenities will be added around the lake. Parking will be expanded by approximately 50 spaces. There is money budgeted for the playground and skate park improvements. The ballfields will be phased in later. No changes are planned for the tennis courts. Lieberman inquired about the status of Round Lake’s water quality. Gunderson said it is low and looks poor, but it is swimmable. CITY AND SCHOOL FACILITY USE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES November 16, 2011 Page 5 Lieberman reiterated the need for a 50 meter pool in the State. If pursued, it could bring in a lot of revenue. Kutina said a lot of parents had expressed they’d like to see more going on at the CMS performing arts center. The school board is seeking proposals. Kutina will follow up on this for the next meeting. Obiazor asked if there are any anticipated changes to usage or operations of the pool at Oak Point, based on the boundary restructuring. City staff and CSFAC should be included in the discussion. Grant said this is also a curriculum issue to be handled at the principal level. Kutina said she will get information from the school board’s perspective and touch base with Johnson regarding Community Ed. Grant and Obiazor reviewed the history of how City/School charges are handled. V. NEXT MEETING A. MEETING DATE The next CSFAC meeting will be Wednesday, March 28, 2011, 7 p.m. at the Eden Prairie Community Center (EPCC). Obiazor will reserve a room. B. DISCUSSION ITEMS Round Lake Master Plan Round Lake Water Quality EPCC Indoor Pool Update Oak Point Pool Usage Central Middle School Performing Arts Center Update 2011 City/School Fees and Charges Large Group Permits – City Parks 2012 Summer Field Usage 2012 Hennepin Youth Sports Grant Update Other VI. OTHER None VII. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Lieberman moved, seconded by Kutina, to adjourn. Motion carried 4-0. Chair Gunderson adjourned the meeting at 8:38 pm.