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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJune 8, 2011C I T Y O F © NDOVE 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. • ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304 • (763) 755 -5100 FAX (763) 755 -8923 • WWW.CI.ANDOVER.MN.US Andover Open Space Advisory Commission Meeting Agenda June 8, 2011 Andover City Hall Council Chambers 7.00 p.m. 1. Call to Order 2. Resident Forum 3. Approval of Minutes — May 11, 2011 4. 2011 Site Selection Process 5. July /August Newsletter Article © 6. Update - Maintenance of Open Space Sites 7. Other Business a. Andover Family FunFest b. Next meeting 8. Adjournment H REGULARANDOVER OPENSPACEADVISORYCOMMISSIONMEETING June 8, 2011 MINUTES The Regular Meeting of the Andover Open Space Advisory Commission was called to order by Chairperson Gretchen Sabel at 7:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall,1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Commissioners present: Drago Flores, Val Holthus, Kim Kovich, Jim Olson, Bruce Perry and Suzanne Van Hecke Commissioners absent: None Also present: City Planner, Courtney Bednarz RESIDENT FORUM No one wished to address the Commission APPROVAL OFMINUTES May 11, 2011 Motion by Kovich, Second by Perry to approve the minutes. Motion passed 6 -0 (Olson present). 2011 SITE SELECTION PROCESS Mr. Bednarz stated that the evaluation criteria had been applied to the Aasness property and asked the Commission to discuss the results. Chairperson Sabel stated that she believed the site should be scored higher, particularly in the area of natural features. Commissioner Kovich agreed. Commissioner Perry stated that the natural resources score was higher than all but a few properties when compared to other sites that had been evaluated. Commissioner Olson stated that in the past the Council has looked closely at the evaluation criteria scoring. Mr. Bednarz stated that he had tried not to give out points easily and explained the process he used to score the site. Commissioner Kovich thought the site should score overall in the 60's when compared to other sites on the list. He added that even the area that had been cleared for farming displayed some interesting features. © Regular Open Space Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes —June 8, 2011 Page 2 Chairperson Sabel stated that the tamaracks in and around the wetland added variety that wasn't present at other sites. Commissioner Perry asked if the site should be scored a few points higher as a result. Chairperson Sabel stated that the site did not have an issue with invasive species. Commissioner Kovich stated this is one of the reasons it is important to walk the sites. He stated his impression of the property changed as a result of the site visit. Commissioner Holthus asked what considerations were used to create the concept plan that showed potential future development in this area. Mr. Bednarz explained that the concept was prepared with the preliminary plat for White Pine Wilderness to show how a second access and building sites could be achieved in relation to the wetlands and access spacing guidelines. Chairperson Sabel asked if there were other options for achieving a second access further to the west. Mr. Bednarz stated that the location of a large wetland would make this difficult. Commissioner Kovich stated that, in terms of an open space site, access would be provided through the southerly site. Perhaps at some point in the fixture there would be additional access. Commissioner Perry asked if a single access was a positive or a negative. Chairperson Sabel stated that the northerly parcel would be somewhat secluded and less visible but the areas would be connected and improve the overall experience. Commissioner Kovich stated the entrance sign would clearly mark the entrance and with boundary signage you could choose to walk as far as you wanted within the sites. Mr. Bednarz discussed a conversation with Mr. Aasness about the value of the property and what Mr. Aasness thought would be a fair price. The Commission discussed the value of the property compared to the Anoka County Estimate Market Value. Commissioner Flores stated that he would not want the city to consider spending significantly more than the estimated market value and asked about the nest steps in the process. Mr. Bednarz stated that the Commission could choose to make a recommendation to the Council. The Council would review the recommendation and determine how to proceed. Motion by Kovich, Second by Flores to recommend the City Council consider purchasing the 40 acre parcel owned by Mr. Aasness. © Regular Open Space Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes —June 8, 2011 Page 3 Commissioner Olson asked if the Commission would want to include other sites that had been reviewed in the past in the recommendation. Chairperson Sabel stated that she believed each of the other sites they've looked at have one or more issues that has prevented the city from moving forward with them. She added that this site does not appear to have similar limiting factors. Motion Passed 7 -0. Commissioner Van Hecke asked the Commission if they should wait for the parcel adjacent to Martin's Meadows. Chairperson Sabel stated that the Commission has not been in a rush as they have reviewed sites. She stated that some people may feel like the city should follow through and spend the referendum dollars to preserve open space. Commissioner Kovich stated the Commission had made a deliberate effort not to review sites based on their individual merit and was not driven to spend the money based on a time frame. © Mr. Bednarz stated the Council will likely ask the Commission about other sites and how they see the remaining funds being spent. Commissioner Kovich stated that there would be funds for at least one nice additional property. Commissioner Holthus clarified that there was an additional 40 acres between the Aasness site and the Selmer property that had previously been discussed. She also noted that the property adjacent to Martin's Meadows had scored higher on the evaluation criteria. She asked how a value would be assigned to the Selmer property. Mr. Bednarz stated that the Mr. Selmer had indicated that an appraisal would be acceptable to set the value of the property. Chairperson Sabel noted that the Selmer property was landlocked and that negotiations with surrounding property owners had not been successful. She added that the Aasness property would reduce the gap between open space and the Selmer property. Commissioner Kovich stated that additional acquisition to the north may be possible in the future. Commissioner Flores stated that the open space, with the Aasness parcel, had a combination of © features that improved its overall value to the city as open space. Commissioner Kovich compared the evaluation criteria scoring of several sites noting that few had scored above 50. Q Regular Open Space Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes —June 8, 2011 Page 4 Commissioner Olson stated it is important to remember that the scoring criteria are a tool to help review the sites and that site visits and other information is just as important in making decisions about a property. JULY /AUGUST NEWSLETTER ARTICLE Commissioner VanHecke noted that the name of the park adjacent to martin's Meadows had been changed and asked if there would be an issue with the boundary between the park and open space Mr. Bednarz stated that the Park and Recreation Commission suggested that the park and open space be maintained as one site, with connecting trails and areas to view the river. They did not intend to develop the site as a neighborhood park with ball fields or playground equipment. Commissioner Flores suggested contact information be added to the article to solicit feedback from residents. Commissioner Holthus provided several edits to the newsletter article that the Commission accepted. UPDATE - MAINTENANCE OF OPEN SPACE SITES Mr. Bednarz provided an update on the maintenance activities at both open space sites. He noted that parks maintenance staff had done a lot of work to make the sites more user friendly. The Commission discussed their appreciation for the efforts of the Parks maintenance staff. Motion Sabel, Second by Kovich to express the Commission's heartfelt appreciation and to recognize Kevin Starr and the parks maintenance staff for their efforts to enhance the open space sites with their expertise, dedication and vision. OTHER BUSINESS Commissioner Kovich asked what the outcome of the discussion about naming an open space site after Winslow Holasek. Mr. Bednarz stated that Mrs. Holasek and the Holasek Family were excited about the idea and the Council had indicated that with their acceptance that may be possible. He added that the Commission could address this with the Council at the June 28`" workshop. Commissioner Perry asked if there was a process for naming sites in the city. Mr. Bednarz stated © that there was. Chairperson Sabel suggested that along with the dedication sign, there should be a sign that states the access is temporary and will be moved when the street is extended in the future. Mr. Bednarz asked the Commission if they would want a booth for FunFest again this year. © Regular Open Space Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes —June 8, 2011 Page 5 The Commission discussed Funfest and determined that they would be able to bring a table and chairs. Staff would provide the handouts and maps that could be picked up at City Hall before the event. Mr. Bednarz noted that the Council had offered to take the maps and handouts if there would be parts of the day when no one was available to be at the booth. Commissioners Perry and Kovich volunteered to be at the booth in the morning. Commissioner Kovich stated he could pick up the table and chairs and maps and handouts and bring them to the event. Commissioners Van Hecke and Flores volunteered to be at the booth in the afternoon. Commissioner VanHecke suggested the Commissioners try to solicit feedback from resident at the event on topics like what kind of open space they would like to see. Chairperson Sabel stated that she has attended the event in the past and it has not always been easy to get feedback but the maps and handouts help bring people to the booth. © Mr. Bednarz noted that the Commission would be scheduled to meet with the Council at the June 28' Council Workshop. Motion Perry, Second by Kovich to Adjourn. Motion passed 7 -0. The meeting adjourned at 8:23 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Courtney Bednarz U