HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/17/1981 • CITY OF APPLE V �
ALLEY
PARK COMMITTEE MINUTES
- FEBRUARY 17, 1981
PRESENT: Dahlen, Naegeli, Gutenkauf, Holienbeck .
ABSENT: Sterling, Miller.
l . Call to order.
Vice-Chairperson Naegeli called meeting to order at 7: 03 p.m.
2 . Approval of minutes from FebruarY �� 1981 meetin�.
Nfs . Hollenbeck stated a correction to minutes, page 8, seeond
paragraph, last line should read "the other three first Town
Board Members ; Natwick, Ulrich, and Thorberg, rather than
Council Members as stated.
Minutes were approved as corrected.
3 . Park Committee discussion of future work priorities .
Mr. Naegeli stated with the grant money and the match by the
City there was $62,000 for improvement of Alimagnet Park. He
said the work was pretty much done with the exception c�f ciean-
ing up some trees from the storms last summe r. He felt the
Committee should take a journey at one of the meetings to take
a look at it since this was done with the first funds, and the
first time a consultant was hired. As far as the rest of
the parks go there are a few paths left to be done . He stated
that Mr. Bassett had received a call from a gentlemen who lives
in Palimino asking if there would be some playground equipment
in Heritage Park.
Ms . Gutenkauf stated it might be a good idea, but the land is
so low if there is rain it was pretty wet. Mr. Idaegeli stated
there was a littie more land there than it looks like because
it slopes off to the southeast . He said �the gentlemen said
that people think r�ostly c�f there being older people in the
area but that there were a lot of children. Mr. Naegeli stated
this might be so�ething the Committee would want to think about
if there is some money to spare after making sure the projeets
presently underway are all completed. He added that the gentle-
man would like to come to a meeting to visit with the Committee ,
Ms. Gutenkauf stated there might be a shortage of open area,
depending on what happens with Chaparral, so the Committee should
look at it. She stated there was probably 2,50 homes back in the
area. Mr. Naegeli stated when the gentlemen comes to the meeting
they could look at it to see if the demand was there .
Ms . Hollenbeck cheeked the elassification as NPP, and stated
that if that was what the Committes had classified it she felt
that was what it should be . Mr. Naegeli said they would have
to first look at the size, what could be done in the way of
grading, and the costs . Also, the bond issue would need to be
checked to see if this was a part of i-t. He stated bond issue
money cannot be used for repair, and when the bond issue was
passed it had to be shown that we were allotting a certain
Park Committee M' utes •
February 17, 198�
Page 2
amount for one park and amount close to that at another, He
said that some of the play area in the east and west side are
not being used. He said it was nice the gentleman �anted ta
come in and visit and Mr. Bassett would set it up.
Ms . Hollenbeck stated people came in when they wan�ed the BNiX,
and that there had been a lot of coverage when this was set up.
�Ir. Naegeli stated it had b�en very successful and in looking
a future priorities he thought it might be worthwhile_ �o give
some thought to a permanent type facility.
Mr. Naegeli announced that Barbara Savanick was appointed as
Park Liaison by City Council .
Mr. Naegeli stated the County Board was having a meeting this
date . Nir. Rollins is asking for a rezoning of his property
up by the golf course, and the City Council was writing a letter
to the Dakota County Board hoping it will be zoned park and the
County will buy it. The County has had appraisals on the pro-
perty. Ms . Hollenbeck asked if it was thought the County would
buy the land, and Mr. Naegeli stated he doubted it, that it
really stemmed back to the City because while little three to
five acre tracks were being picked up that land was up there
and it wasn't bought.
4. Committee update for new member.
Mr. Dahlen stated he had met with Mr. Bassett, and was in the
proc�ss of going through old minutes and the bond issue.
l�r. Naegeli gave the history by stating the City h.ad had a Park
Committee some years ago but i� had become i,nactive . In 1975
the Council decided they wanted to pass another bond issue be-
cause they were getting more parks so the y reappainted s��en
Members to the Park Committee who met once a month. He said
they had had a hard time raising a quorum and didn't get going
beeause they didn't have any direction. He said they then
lost a couple of Members and he had been appointed as one of
them. He said the Committee started to take off in the fall
of 1976, established meeting on a twice a month basis , went
through a concept plan for what parks there were and the ones
they didn't have a plan for they had drawn up a plan so there
was a concept plan for every park on what they wanted to do .
In the meantime, he said, they were involved in the Alimagnet
Park and in the spring of 1977 the Committee was ready to go
with a bond issue which was presented to the Couneil . He
said the school bond issue had just failed, and the Council
turned down the Committee•s request for a bond issus because
they felt the school bond might come back and they didn't
want a conflict. The Council then 5aid the Committee could
go with the issue in the fall at which time the school bond
was coming back. During this same time, he said, there was
a conflict because people from Alima.gnet wanted land purchased
that abutted Alimagnet even though there was going to be a park
dedieation of 40 acres . He said the people put enough pressure
Park Committee �' utes
February 17, 198� �
Page 3
on the Council and they voted to purchase another 10 acres
in conjunetion with the dedication for $60,000 in the spring
of 19?'� , He stated the Committee then regrouped, and cut
out the restoration at Alimagnet and another building that
was planned to eome up with the $6��0�0. He stated that the
people from Alimagnet would come t�a the Park l�eetings and
verbally threaten the Members that �hey would be put off
the Committee and that the bond issue or anything ei�e _would ever
pass if they didn't purchase this land. The Couneil then
�old the Committee they had to put it in.
In the spring of 1977, the Committee contacted 35 serviee
organizations because the bond issue was coming up i� Sept-
ember, he said, and the Committee had three to four meetings
and also split into groups holding meetings at schools as well
as distributing pamphlets . The bond issue Iost around 60/�0.
He went on to say the Committee was disturbed about losing
the bond issue, and they had also lost four memb�rs in July
and August and had gone into the bond issue wi�h two or three
people who really hadn't been working on it.
Mr. Naegeli stated they again regrouped and the consensus of
opinion was that there would be new parks, old parks, and the
athletic complex. He stated the Committee really worked hard
on it going door to door to every house in Apple Valley, the
shopping centers, and formed a non-profi� coropration to be
able to buy the supplies because there wasn'� any money. He
stated the athletic complex failed misera°bly, but it was the
only one that was lost. He said it was thought that the strong
athletic vote would bring the improvements to the parks .
Ms . Hollenbeck stated that it was thought probable that it
would end up with just the athletic complex. Nir. Naegeli went
on to say that the bond issue pas�ed: in the spring of 1979
at 1 .2 million dollars which was the biggest bond issue in
the seven county area to pass . From then on, it was to decide
where the Committee wanted to go and to start doing things with
the money. He said the task then was �o decide how -to , tackle
this ba.g ari operation. He stated �r. Bassett picked a con-
sultant and he was hired at $70,�00 who dr�v� .�p all ne�v plansi �
which were reall,y a copy of the plans the Gommittee had drawn
up before . He said they were then all set to go in the fall
of 1979 when the Council said no because they hadn't sold the
bonds yet, and they had decided to hold them because of the
firehouse bonds and the public works bonds . He stated the
market dropped then, and they couldn'� se7,1, and the Park
Committee couldn't do any construction. He said they finally
got the bonds sold a year ago in January, and the only money
spent to this point was to the consultant. He stated they
had gone through books with the consultant who sug�ested the
rop� type swings, etc . , and bids were put out for play gro�nd
equipment only to find out that the cost was over $10�,000
more than the candy striped equipment could be purehased and
all agreed to go with �the candy striped equipment.
Mr. Naegeli went on to say that they then got into building
cvntracts with the original thought being an earth shelter type
building dug in the hill at an estimate of $40,QOO. However,
Park Committee M' utes
February 1�, 198� �
Page �
When the consultant finished the plans, he said, th� total
was around $$0 to $90,000. , sa the Cominittee decided on a plain
old frame structure tha�t could be built for the $�0�000, with
a change in the type of siding.
He said they had run into some extra costs like the water pro-
blem at Hagemeister which ran b�tween $2 and $4,000 but were
told it had to be done. He said drinking fo�.ntains have been
placed a-� all the teMnis courts . This,he said, would more
or less bring the Committee up to the present time .
N�r. Naegeli went on to say that Mr. Bassett was going to bring
in a complete financial report but he felt moneywise they were
in pretty good shape .
5. �ther I tems .
Ms . Guter�.kauf stated that she had seen two people driving on
the new path in Chaparral Park and Y�ad called City Ha11 to
report the ineidents . She said they were no kids, in fact
they were quite o�d gentlemen. Later she said she saw two
more people do the same thing. l�r. Naegeli asked how they
got across the dirt gulley at the end of tY�e trail . Ms . Hollenbeck
stated barricades should be put up.
Mr. Naegeli stated a note should be made to �i�. Bassett repor�ing
the incidents . Ms . Gutenkauf stated they had to have gone across
the gulley and out onto the freeway becau�e she had watched for
a long period of time and they never came back. She added that
there was so much snow there one time that it had to be someone
who knev� where it was . Ms . Hollenbeck stated she didn•t see
how they could have gotten across without being stuck.
6 . Ad,��ourn.
�OTIO�V: by Gutenkauf, seconded by Hollenbeck, for meeting to
adjourn.
YES: 4. NO - �. Motion carried.
Next Meeting March 3, 1981 .
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