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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNRRC Minutes 04-2006 City of Hastings Natural Resources and Recreation Commission Minutes April 11, 2006 6:00 pm 1)Roll Call at 6 pm: Commissioners Christenson, Popp, Rohloff, Schommer, Vaughan and Parks and Recreation Director Bernstein and Superintendent Smith. Absent: Commissioners Brown and Vandehoef. 2)Approved March meeting minutes. Motion by Schommer. Seconded by Vaughan. Passed unanimously. 3)Setting Agenda: Director Bernstein requested two additions to New Business – “Pool Business Plan” and “Bus Tour.” “Sign at the Arena” was added to Old Business. 4)Director Bernstein handed out departmental updates to the NRRC members for their review. Superintendent Smith mentioned that since the updates were done, the lacrosse fields have been painted, the fence cap installation is nearing completion at the ball fields, and that the turf is down at the Civic Arena. He also mentioned that the City Forester, Paul Mahoney, received notice that Hastings was chosen to receive the Tree City USA award for 2005 and that he and Paul would be attending a ceremony to accept that award. 5)Aquatic Center Sun Shades: Director Bernstein explained that bids have been received from 4 vendors. The sun shades would go over the concession area and also the lifeguard chairs. The installation will be completed by the Parks & Recreation Dept. Staff. MOTION: Commissioner Rohloff motioned that we accept the bid from Sun Ports for sun shades at the Hastings Family Aquatic Center. Seconded by Commissioner Vaughan. Passed unanimously. 6)Hastings Hawks Agreement: Director Bernstein mentioned that there were a few changes made to the agreement with the Hastings Hawks, mostly in regards to the bathrooms. The agreement was initially drawn up in 2000 with the understanding that it would be revisited annually. Since there were no major changes to the agreement, it has not been redone until this time. Director Bernstein mentioned that since we will have evening staff at Vet’s Park this year, the bathrooms can be open more frequently. Commissioner Christenson mentioned that anytime the concession stands are open, the bathrooms are as well. 7)T-Mobile: Director Bernstein mentioned that T-Mobile had approached him regarding dead spot in their network here in Hastings. They would like to put up a 75’ tower with an electronics area to rectify their situation. They first requested to place the tower at the Aquatic Center. Due to the aesthetics of the neighborhood, this is not felt to be a viable area. Then, they requested a spot by the tennis courts. Much of that land is owned by the Highway Dept., so that is not a good choice either. The final option is to place the tower at the Parks & Recreation Office. Director Bernstein mentioned that the amount of the monthly rental fee needs to be raised before we would consider allowing this. 8)Cell Phone Use in Facilities: Director Bernstein passed out a draft copy of a policy regarding cell phone use in our facilities. The concern is that with the abundance of camera cell phones and the difficulty to distinguish between phones with cameras and phone without cameras, there is a danger of misuse in the locker/changing rooms at our facilities. Commissioner Christenson wondered if cell phones should be restricted on the pool deck as well. Director Bernstein mentioned that the big problem is enforcement. Concerns were raised by various commissioners including – Will younger staff members feel comfortable enforcing policy? What if someone is using the cell phone for an emergency or to contact a babysitter/family member? If we ask people to leave the pool to use their phones, will they be able to re-enter due to capacity issues? Commissioner Rohloff mentioned that at the YMCA, no phones or cameras are allowed in at all. Commissioner Christenson mentioned the need for us to have signage at the facilities. Director Bernstein said that he had sent an e-mail to the Parks & Recreation Directors of 3 cities. He used their comments to come up with the draft policy. Commissioner Vaughan wondered how far should we go with this policy – is it an issue in the arena, when figure skaters are on the ice? Commissioner Schommer emphasized that enforcement will be a huge issue. Director Bernstein mentioned that we can take membership away – if someone is not abiding by the rules, they can be considered trespassing. Director Bernstein will do some more homework and check with some other cities regarding their policies. The NRRC decided to table this issue until next month’s meeting. 9)Scholarship Procedures: Director Bernstein explained that in past years, the Aquatic Center Manager has had to determine whether or not someone qualifies for scholarship funds. Last year, 90 season passes were given out under the scholarship program. The department would like to make the process less arbitrary and have a way to track applicants better. So, they have written up some guidelines which applicants would have to qualify for in order to receive funds. The income guidelines used are from Dakota County. An application would need to be filled out and income verified. The other difference from what has been done in the past is that this would be a “household” scholarship instead of an “individual” scholarship. A sliding scale would be used based on family size with a maximum of $250 and an amount would be allocated for the household to purchase from various recreation programs run by the City (HFAC, Arena, etc.) Commissioner Vaughan questioned whether giving out season passes was too much. Maybe daily admissions should be given instead. Director Bernstein explained that with this program, a certain dollar amount would be given, and it would be up to the family to decide how to spend it. Commissioner Popp wondered if we should only make scholarships available to the children, but then we make it so that the parents are possibly unable to come and supervise. Superintendent Smith questioned if there is a cap on the number of scholarships that can be given out. There is not. Commissioner Popp said that if we don’t have a scholarship program, we may make it so that a number of families will not be able to use our facilities. He believes we should err on the side of generosity. Commissioner Vaughan felt that the income scale / scholarship amounts seemed high, and that we should lessen them. The NRRC decided to table this issue until next month’s meeting. 10)Levee Park Meeting Recap: The preliminary design that is going before City Council was shown to the NRRC. The main change is that the restroom building has been eliminated due to parking concerns by the Downtown Business Association. Temporary bathrooms are still located on the plan, although there was discussion about having them in a better location. Director Bernstein mentioned that a stand-alone restroom building is not feasible due to maintenance and staffing issues. 11)Software: Director Bernstein informed the NRRC that the department needs to upgrade our management systems. Staff has seen demos of various software packages and has found one called Community Season that the department likes. The CEO of the company is Phil Sykes who is a Hastings resident. The software package offers ways to improve our registrations, membership management, facilities management, point-of-sale, etc. 12)Trail Maintenance: Larson Engineering will be taking care of our trail maintenance this year at an estimated cost of $74,000. Director Bernstein mentioned that he and Superintendent Smith rearranged the priorities for a few of the trails that would be worked on in order to get the most for our money. The work that will be done will be for bituminous maintenance only. The tennis courts at Roadside will be repaired (cracks filled, etc.) by a separate company who gave us a really reasonable bid. Director Bernstein mentioned that one change is that the Lake Isabel court repair has been eliminated this year due to the possible work at Lake Isabel. Commissioner Rohloff asked whether or not a trail connection could be done at Sunny Acres to connect the current trail to the sidewalk. The NRRC decided to view that area on a future bus tour. 13)New Business -Pool Business Plan: Director Bernstein mentioned that the Pool Business Plan had been completed by staff and copies were given to the commissioners. The department feels that due diligence has been done regarding the operations at the aquatic center. th - Bus Tour: The NRRC will meet at 6 p.m. on May 9 and take a bus tour of the City to view any issues / concerns at various parks or trails. Some stops that were recommended were Sunny Acres, Greten and Conzemius Parks. Any other concerns should be sent to Director Bernstein to include in the tour route. 13) Old Business - HHB Dry Floor Practice Area: Jerry Baum, President of the Hastings Hockey Boosters presented a plan to the NRRC for a dry floor practice area at the Civic Arena. A fundraiser was done last year for player development and $16,000 was raised. The HHB have been going to Hudson for dry floor practice for 4 years, but it is not cost effective and there are transportation issues for the boys. The decision was to build an on-going facility that the HHB can run. Ultimately, the HHB would like to have a larger facility, but this facility should be used for the next 5 to 10 years. The plan will accommodate all of the Arena’s storage needs. Commissioner Rohloff wondered if sprinklers were necessary. Jerry explained that since the roof will not be enclosed, the structure will meet fire codes as is. Director Bernstein mentioned that he would like to have a contract with the HHB similar to the one we have with the Hastings Hawks. Commissioner Christenson questioned whether the kids could be used to help with the construction, as the HHB would like, since there may be issues with worker’s comp, liability, etc. Jerry said that as long as the kids are not handling any power tools, they believe it will be o.k. Commissioner Vaughan wondered if it needed to be handicapped accessible. Since the facility, by definition, is not a handicapped facility, the structure does not need to be ADA compliant. Superintendent Smith mentioned that if any parents are allowed up to watch their children, then handicapped accessibility issues may come up – in that case, it would be better to not allow parents up to watch. Commissioner Vaughan expressed concern that a business plan has not yet been completed for the Arena, and are we sure that this is what is best for the Arena at this time. He also wondered if we are setting a precedent for other groups that want to put up practice areas at city facilities. Both Commissioners Vaughan and Rohloff mentioned that noise will be an issue, especially for the Arena Manager. MOTION: Commissioner Schommer motioned to proceed with the Dry Floor proposal as has been presented by City Staff and the Hastings Hockey Boosters. Seconded by Rohloff. Passed by vote of 4-1 (Vaughan dissenting.) - Sign at Arena: Director Bernstein mentioned that one of the new signs, similar to the ones being placed in the parks, will be placed at the Civic Arena in 2007. He also mentioned that he would like to see a lighted sign in the future that could be seen from Hwy 316. Commissioner Christenson wondered what happened to the marquee sign that Coca-Cola was going to help fund. Director Bernstein informed the NRRC that it had not been approved and so will not be happening. MOTION to Adjourn. th Next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 9, 2006. Adjourned at 8:14 p.m. Minutes submitted by: Kristin Behrens