HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012/01/17 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session I/I St. Louis Park OFFICIAL MINUTES
MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL STUDY SESSION
ST. LOUIS PARK,MINNESOTA
JANUARY 17,2012
The meeting convened at 6:30 p.m.
Councilmembers present: Mayor Jeff Jacobs, Steve Hallfin, Anne Mavity, Susan Sanger, Sue
Santa, and Jake Spano.
Councilmembers absent: Julia Ross.
Staff present: City Manager (Mr. Harmening), Director of Parks and Recreation (Ms. Walsh),
and Recording Secretary(Ms. Hughes).
1. Review Applicants for Community Recreation Facility Task Force
Ms. Walsh presented the staff report and proposed makeup of the Community Recreation
Facility Task Force. She advised that the makeup of the task force will provide good
representation across the entire City and includes representation from the Parks and Recreation
Advisory Commission, Planning Commission, Community Education Advisory Commission,
youth associations, Lenox, business community, school district, youth, and a representative from
each ward. She added that the various commissions were asked for volunteers and the City did
not ask the commissions to appoint someone.
Mayor Jacobs stated that Council interviewed someone a number of years ago who indicated a
willingness to help the City with this process and asked if this gentleman has been contacted.
Ms. Walsh replied that the resident did not apply but indicated he would participate in any focus
groups. She indicated she could talk with him again if Council is interested in his participation.
Mayor Jacobs felt his input would be valuable.
Councilmember Sanger expressed concern about the process getting hijacked by people pushing
for turf She also felt that indoor sports should be represented on the task force. She added that
there appears to be a disproportionate number of people from the Minikhada Vista
neighborhood; in addition, she did not see a significant number of older adults on the task force.
Councilmember Mavity stated she hoped that the task force facilitator could adequately corral
the task force conversations in a productive way and was hesitant to remove anyone who has
indicated an interest in serving.
Ms. Walsh stated that the Historical Society has expressed its support of the City's process with
respect to a community facility and have advised that they are interested in advancing their
storage needs.
Councilmember Sanger indicated she was contacted by someone from the Historical Society
regarding their interest in having space for a display if a community recreation facility is built.
Councilmember Spano agreed there did not appear to be a lot of older adults on the task force.
He also expressed concern that the makeup of the task force did not have strong representation of
kids and wanted to see these two groups well represented on the task force.
Special Study Session Minutes -2- January 17, 2012
Ms. Walsh suggested that a better way for the schools to participate may be to bnng materials to
the schools at the point when the task force is ready to engage them in discussion.
Councilmember Mavity stated that the task force should serve as a steering committee that is
guiding the process on behalf of the City and that process will include going to Lenox and the
schools for focus group discussions to get input. She indicated she was comfortable with
appointing all of the proposed task force members.
Councilmember Santa agreed and added the role of the task force will include collecting
information from different groups.
Councilmember Hallfin stated he was comfortable with staff's recommendation regarding the
makeup of the task force, but expressed concern about managing a 21-member task force.
Councilmember Santa stated it is likely people will drop out of the task force as time goes on due
to other commitments.
Mayor Jacobs stated the task force will guide the process and will serve in an advisory role to
Council, including going out into the community and gathering information from kids, seniors,
neighborhood associations, sports groups, etc., to understand the function of a community center.
Mr. Harmening stated that if the City moves forward with a community recreation facility, it will
be one of the largest projects undertaken by the City and felt it may be appropriate to have a
large task force given the significance of this project.
Councilmember Mavity asked that the role of the task force as well as the timeframe be laid out
clearly and to open up the process for other people in the next phase.
Councilmember Sanger stated it should be made clear to the task force that they will not be
making any final decisions or selecting a site for a community recreation facility. She indicated
one of the roles of this group is to hear different points of view and learn from each other.
Councilmember Hallfin suggested that the task force members take a tour of other community
recreation facilities, similar to the tour taken by Council last year, so the task force can see what
other cities are doing and to spur ideas.
It was the consensus of the City Council to appoint a 21-member community recreation facility
task force, as recommended by staff.
Discussion Regarding Outdoor Recreational Lighting Study
Councilmember Mavity stated the outdoor recreational lighting study is being driven by the
issues at Benilde but similar issues have come up in other developments, e.g., Elllipse, in terms
of how lighting impacts a surrounding community. She asked that the study include looking at
how lighting impacts surrounding residents on an overall basis.
Mr. Harmening confirmed that the study is intended to address lighting standards throughout the
City.
Special Study Session Minutes -3- January 17, 2012
Councilmember Spano cautioned the City against coming up with a "one size fits all" solution
because there may be situations where this will not work. He stated there may be instances
where it is left to a neighborhood to come up with a solution that works better for them.
Councilmember Sanger agreed and stated that Benilde has not complied with the City's
ordinance and brought this on themselves by how its field was designed. She felt it was fine to
revise the ordinance, but was concerned that revising the ordinance in a way that retroactively
lets Benilde off the hook for not complying with the ordinance raises questions about the
process.
The meeting adjourned at 7:09 p.m.
Written Reports provided and documented for recording purposes only:
2. Outdoor Recreational Lighting Study
Nancy Stroth, City Clerk Jeff Jac,,bs / a,or