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071321 CAC Agenda PacketIf you are unable to attend the meeting, please contact Susan Rader at 763-531-5152 or srader@newhopemn.gov Citizen Advisory Commission Meeting City Hall, 4401 Xylon Avenue North July 13, 2021 7 p.m. 1. Call to Order. 2. Roll Call. 3. Approval of May 11, 2021 minutes. 4. Police Department Update with Chief Tim Hoyt regarding Body Worn Cameras and Community Engagement Program. 5. Update on Garage Sale. 6. Brainstorming – Ideas to bring attention to New Hope. 7. Parks and Recreation project updates. 8. Other business. 9. Adjournment. CITY OF NEW HOPE 4401 XYLON AVENUE NORTH NEW HOPE, MINNESOTA 55428 Citizen Advisory Commission Regular Meeting May 11, 2021 New Hope City Hall, 7 p.m. CALL TO ORDER Chair Herman called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Absent: Staff Present: Commissioners Randy Herman, Jill Kaufman, Scott Kulzer, Carrie Neuburger, Rick Riley, Mike Terres, Bill Wills None Susan Rader, Staff Liaison Tony Portesan, Recreation Facilities Supervisor APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Wills made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 13, 2021 meeting. Commissioner Kaufman seconded the motion. Voting in favor: Commissioners Herman, Kaufman, Kulzer, Neuburger, Riley, Terres, Wills. Opposed: None. Motion carried. UPDATE ON NEW HOPE AQUATIC PARK Tony Portesan, Recreation Facilities Supervisor, addressed the commissioners. He announced that the new aquatic park would open for the season on June 5, and reported that programming would include water walking, lap swimming, and swimming lessons for Little Ones through Level 6. He informed the commissioners that hiring had been mostly completed, and noted that staff orientation would be held in about two weeks. He also mentioned that he would be providing specific training for guest services, concessions and water safety instructors, and would also teach a Lifeguard Certification course for staff who needed certification. Mr. Portesan reported that he had been working with vendors to install concessions equipment as well as restroom equipment, and noted that supplies were currently being stocked. He also mentioned that cleaning of the 50 meter pool was underway, and he hoped to begin filling it in approximately 1 ½ weeks. He informed the commissioners that it would take a few days to fill, followed by a few more days to balance the chemicals. Mr. Portesan reported that four local swim teams had rented the 50 meter pool for practices in the mornings, and a fifth team had expressed interest. He explained that rentals would occur every weekday morning as well as some weekend mornings. He also mentioned that the New Hope Crystal Plymouth Swim Club (NHCP) would be hosting some weekend morning swim meets, as well as one regional swim meet July 16-18. He added that the aquatic park would be closed to the public during that regional meet. New Hope Citizen Advisory Commission May 11, 2021 Page 2 Ms. Rader informed the commissioners that the Governor was in the process of modifying the outdoor capacity limits that had been in place, and noted that prior to this change, staff would have had to limit capacity at the pool. Mr. Portesan added that under the previous guidelines, the facility would have been limited to a maximum of 570 people, and activities like water walking, lap swimming and swimming lessons would have been limited as well. He added that he could now increase maximum class sizes for most swimming lessons, and noted that many of the classes currently had waiting lists. Ms. Rader also reported that during the initial budgeting process two years ago, the city council had approved staff’s recommendation to adjust the start times for open swimming. She explained that in years past, open swimming had begun at 1 p.m. daily, however the new facility would open at 12 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. on weekends. Commissioner Wills inquired about the concessions menu. Mr. Portesan replied that it would include hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza, chicken tenders, nachos, chips, candy, ice cream, fountain pop, and bottled pop and water. Commissioner Riley wondered if the concessions operation would be run by an outside vendor or city staff. Mr. Portesan replied that products would be purchased from a distributor and would be prepared and sold by staff. He added that he held certification in food protection management and would be training all staff. Ms. Rader informed the commissioners that the concession stand featured a walk-up window that would be accessible to the general public. Commissioner Riley wondered whether the pool was naturally heated. Mr. Portesan replied that two large heaters would heat the 50 meter pool while an additional heater would heat the shallow water pool. He added that the shallow water pool would be set to around 83 degrees, while the 50 meter pool would be a few degrees cooler. Chair Herman inquired about the capacity of the pool complex. Mr. Portesan replied that the capacity in the water was approximately 1,233 people, while the deck capacity amounted to an additional 1,200 people. Chair Herman wondered whether staff had planned on the rentals from the swim teams. Mr. Portesan replied yes. New Hope Citizen Advisory Commission May 11, 2021 Page 3 Ms. Rader added that the city had been fortunate to have swim team rentals in the mornings in the past. She noted that there were a limited number of 50 meter pools in the metro area, and commented that the swim clubs had expressed strong support for rebuilding a 50 meter pool. Chair Herman wondered if the rest of the pool complex would be open to the public during swim meets. Mr. Portesan commented that two Saturday morning meets planned for June would not impact open swimming, but noted that a three-day regional meet scheduled for the third weekend in July would cause the pool to be closed to the public. Ms. Rader explained that the organization Minnesota Swimming had provided a grant of $40,000 to the city of New Hope toward its project costs. In exchange, the city had authorized the ability to hold a three-day regional meet for the next four summers. She added that the swim club would still pay a fee to use the aquatic park during that time. Commissioner Kaufman wondered whether there would be pass reciprocity with any neighboring cities. Ms. Rader replied no, but noted that Crystal and Golden Valley residents received the resident rate on membership purchases. Commissioner Kaufman also wondered whether any safety or security measures had been included that had not been present in the past. Ms. Rader replied that the new gate system would make it easier to control entry into the aquatic park compared to the previous pool. She explained that the new mechanical systems were much more efficient and were housed in a dry environment, unlike the previous system. She also mentioned that the new facility featured security cameras, unlike the previous facility. Commissioner Neuburger wondered whether additional lifeguards would be needed in comparison to the old facility. Ms. Rader replied yes. Commissioner Neuburger inquired about the guidelines for closing the aquatic park due to weather. Mr. Portesan replied that the facility would close whenever lightning was observed and remain closed until 30 minutes following the last observed lightning strike. He added that the pool could remain open during rain showers, unless it hampered the ability of lifeguard staff to clearly see to the bottom of the pool. New Hope Citizen Advisory Commission May 11, 2021 Page 4 Commissioner Riley wondered about the severe weather location. Ms. Rader replied that patrons could seek shelter at city hall, if needed. Commissioner Kulzer inquired about the hiring process. Mr. Portesan replied that positions had been advertised locally, and noted that he had also reached out to local swim teams and high school coaches for potential lifeguards. Commissioner Kaufman mentioned that the school district was also offering swim lessons. Ms. Rader reported that staff had participated in a discussion with Robbinsdale Community Education staff regarding the possibility of sharing staff. Commissioner Kulzer wondered whether staff had any concerns regarding parking for the farmers market. Ms. Rader replied that staff had mapped out parking for farmers market vendors and customers. She added that staff had also requested that the street be blocked off, whether or not vendors opted to use it. She stated that the parking lot west of the pool would be designated for pool customers only, and noted that portable signage would be placed there on Saturday mornings. The commissioners thanked Mr. Portesan for his presentation. He excused himself from the meeting at 7:32 p.m. LIBERTY PARK ADOPTION Chair Herman referred to the commissioners’ packets, and noted that it had included a welcome letter from City Forester Shawn Markham, an agreement document, a list of safety tips, and a volunteer roster sheet. Ms. Rader offered to complete the agreement, provided the commissioners were interested in proceeding. All present were interested in participating. Commissioner Wills mentioned that he had visited Liberty Park the previous evening, and thought that the benches and picnic table could use paint. He also mentioned the possibility of planting a tree and stated that he would follow up with the city forester. He added that there did not appear to be any small planting projects needed at this time. Commissioner Riley wondered about Shawn Markham’s opinion on planting. Ms. Rader replied that she had met with Mr. Markham earlier that day and reported that he had not identified any planting projects that this time. She reminded the commissioners that the trail would be replaced this summer , New Hope Citizen Advisory Commission May 11, 2021 Page 5 and the playground equipment, basketball court and hoops were scheduled for replacement in 2023. She added that a new park sign would probably be installed in 2023 as well, and noted that there could be an opportunity to plant around that sign. Ms. Rader reviewed that projects for the June cleanup at Liberty Park could include trash pickup, painting the benches and table, picking up fallen branches, pulling and/or trimming weeds, and pruning suckers on trees. The commissioners agreed to meet on Tuesday, June 8 at Liberty Park at 6 p.m. or later for park cleanup and painting. UPDATE ON GARAGE SALE Ms. Rader reported that 43 residents had registered to participate in the garage sale to date. She added that she planned to create reusable signs that would be posted throughout the city the week of the sale. BRAINSTORMING – IDEAS TO BRING ATTENTION TO NEW HOPE Chair Herman made the following suggestions:  Hold a music festival at the performance center, possibly inviting several high school marching bands to perform.  Offer a kite-building/flying contest.  Host a day of comedy at the performance center.  Host a fun run, possibly at Hidden Valley Park.  Create a community cookbook in which residents could submit their recipes. Ms. Rader stated that performance center ideas would probably have to be postponed until summer 2022, as the summer and fall 2021 schedules were already underway. She also mentioned that the New Hope Lions were in the process of planning Hey Day, a one-day festival that may include a fun run at Victory Park. She added that in the future, the New Hope Lions would like to move the festival to Civic Center Park. PARKS AND RECREATION PROJECT UPDATES Ms. Rader reported that the city council had approved the Corner Park playground site work. She explained that the contractor for the site work would replace the playground container at Corner Park, as well as the basketball court at Little Acre Park. She added that this contractor had also won the contract for the street infrastructure project. Ms. Rader also mentioned the Liberty Park trail project, and reported that residents in the immediate area had been mailed a notification. She added that a flyer would be posted on the warming house door regarding the upcoming project. Ms. Rader reported that the ice arena roof project was nearing completion and the skylight would be replaced later this summer. Commissioner Kulzer referred to the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new aquatic park and wondered whether the media would be in attendance. New Hope Citizen Advisory Commission May 11, 2021 Page 6 Ms. Rader replied that CCX Media had been invited to the event and had planned to attend. OTHER BUSINESS Mayor Hemken requested the floor, and reported that “Food Truck Fridays” would take place on Fridays, beginning May 28, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. in the city hall parking lot. Ms. Rader made the following announcements:  Music in the Park featuring “The Percolators” would be held on May 26 at 7 p.m. at the performance center.  Another Music in the Park, featuring “The Castaways” would be held on June 9 at 7 p.m. at the performance center.  The first Movie in the Park, “Big Hero 6” would be held on June 17 at 9:15 p.m. at the performance center.  The Aquatic Park opens June 5.  The Young Mudder youth event would be held on June 12. Commissioner Riley wondered whether people still needed to register for the performance center events in light of the relaxed COVID guidelines. Ms. Rader replied no. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Riley made a motion to adjourn the regular meeting of the Citizen Advisory Commission. Commissioner Neuburger seconded the motion. All present voted in favor. Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 8 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Penny Spitzer Recording Secretary CAC AGENDA ITEMS FOR 2021 AS OF 6/22/21 The following is a tentative listing of major agenda items that have either been assigned to CAC, a CAC member has asked that the item be discussed, or city staff has asked that the item be discussed by CAC. *Regular Meetings: August 10 – Community Development Update: Projects and Programs with Director Sargent September 9 – Commissioner Bus Tour September 14 – No regular CAC meeting September 20 – Work Session with the City Council October 12 – November 9 – Budget Update December 14 – possible Legislative Update (Susan to work w/Mayor Hemken) *Note: A meeting may be cancelled if there are no agenda items. On-going  Continue to sponsor Snowman Contest, City-wide Garage Sale  Ideas to bring attention to New Hope (possible activities/events - skatepark event; curling; food truck event)  Promotion of existing City programs: In Focus, RAVE, Outstanding Business  Volunteering at P&R/City events Updates  Park Projects Possible Future Topics  Planning Commission Update  ?Residential Organics Recycling Implementation