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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/28/2006 - Regular Minutes - Parks Board PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT MINUTES EDELWEISS GARTENS PARK SITE DEVELOPMENT PUBLIC HEARING Tuesday, March 28, 2006 - 7:00 p.m. The EXIT Teen Center 1520 Rock Prairie Road Southwood Athletic Park College Station, Texas ?? Staff Present: Steve Beachy, Director; Eric Ploeger, Assistant Director; Peter Vanecek, Senior Park Planner; David Wood, Park Planner; Curtis Bingham, Parks Operations Superintendent Parks & Recreation Advisory Board Members Present: Gary Erwin; John Crompton; Kathleen Ireland. Visitors: David Riggs – 3702 Ardenne Court Christine Thodrsell – 106 Hartford c Lenae Huebner – 331 Robelmont Drive Susan and Larry MNeese – 3810 Dresden Lane Alison Batenhorst – Ardenne Court Charles Thomas – 2902 Coronado Drive Mary Hill – 204 Rugen Lane Victoria and Ryan Podsim – 3818 Dresden Lane Jennifer Moore – 102 Rugen Lane Josh & Marie Hollinger – 206 Meir Lane Shelley Walter Cox – 120 Hartford 1. Call to order. Eric P. began the public hearing at 7:00 p.m. There was no quorum of the Board present. 2. Presentation and discussion of ideas regarding development of the Edelweiss Gartens Park Site in Park Zone 10. Ric welcomed all of the visitors and introduced the staff and Board members present. The purpose of the hearing was to receive input as to which amenities families living in the neighborhood wanted in the park. The 13.6 acre park site had been acquired through park land dedication and he explained that process. Zone 10 is the fastest growing park zone, with only one other developed park in the zone. The features of the site were described. There was a creek running through it with a lot of drainage and a large detention pond area built to the city’s specifications. The detention area (when not filled with water) can be used as practice facilities with backstops or soccer goals. Part of the park is heavily wooded and the other is not. It would be up to the residents of the area as to whether the wooded portion was cleared. Ric described the types of amenities that usually go into a neighborhood park and asked for input from the visitors present. (Staff responses are in bold italics.) Shelley Cox ~ asked how long development would take. A second public hearing would be held in which a proposed site plan would be presented to the Parks & Recreation Board. The Board and the public would have an opportunity to review and provide input. It would probably be two to three months before the next public hearing and board review; four to six months to get the design done and ready to go out to bid; and, approximately nine months before it is under construction, with construction lasting about six months. Page 1 Charles Thomas (one of the developers) ~ He asked if it would be more advantageous (quicker and cheaper) to have the developer build the park? This has been considered and could be done. The funds the city has now would have to be spent by the City. If future funds were to come into that zone from that particular developer, then he could work with the City to install those improvements. He was one of the builders in the Castlegate development and it really sped up the process for the developer to build the park. If the park could be in place a lot quicker it would be to everyone’s benefit. The public hearing process would have to be gone through regardless of who developed the park. The recent revisions to the Park Land Dedication Ordinance that allowed the developer to build the park actually clarified items further and would still require some time. Would it take less than twelve months to complete the park? It would be hard to say since there had been no parks developed since the ordinance had been revised. If there is any way that he or Steve Arden could assist, they would be happy to do so. Jennifer Moore ~ She said she would like to have a cover over the playground and a swing set. Walter Cox ~ A swing set and covered playground were probably two of his top items as well. He asked if staff developed a written ranking when going through the process. Normally not - staff tries to gauge what is needed based on the input heard at the public hearing. Staff will come up with a plan for this park, but will not be able to afford all of the amenities initially. If an item does not get included on the initial plan it does not mean it won’t be installed at a later date. Since this zone’s funds are growing so rapidly it is anticipated that more money will come into the zone fund and the park could be expanded. In the past, rankings had not been done but it depends on what is needed to get a final version of the plan. It may also take more than two public hearings. Could an estimate of the expense of each item be given so that they would have an idea of what was possible for the park? With the current funds available it will be limited as to what amenities can be included because of the cost of construction. Examples of costs for several items were given. Alison Batenhorst ~ She lives on Ardeene Court, which comes off Hartford Street. She said she would like to see some type of trail or sidewalk from the street she lives on, that would cut through the wooded area in order to keep her child off of Victoria. She would also like to see dirt trails for bicycles. It would be easy to get a trail in and easy to have a looped trail system around this park. Walter Cox ~ At Lick Creek Park some of the trails were crushed rock. It may not be cost effective, but it would be nice. It is possible that some of it may be a more natural surface. Normally concrete is used because it is an all- weather surface and is basically maintenance free. Alison Batenhorst ~ She would like to see trails for the children to ride their bicycles on, rather than on the busy streets. With some well-placed bridges and connecting the walks, a great loop system could be achieved. Ric explained how this particular site would fit in with linking the nearby, future school property and the overall greenway system. Page 2 Charles Thomas ~ The covered basketball court at Jack and Dorothy Miller Park was very popular with his grandchildren. More of these are being installed. The third will be going in at Lion’s Park. The walkways are important to him with park benches and picnic tables. Mary Hill ~ She said her house backed up to the park where there is a paved drainage ditch and a section of grass that leads up to her back fence. She asked about the possibility of a buffer between the park and the drainage area that could catch the trash and keep it off of her back fence. She was also concerned about how easy it would be for a child to fall into the drainage ditch unless a railing was installed. These were definitely concerns that would need to be investigated further and Ric thanked her for bringing them to staff’s attention. She asked about the mud accumulation in the ditch. Staff has talked about this and it will need to be cleaned out. She asked if a silt fence could be put up along the sidewalk. A silt fence would be put up and it would be a priority for grass to be planted there. She said she felt there needed to be speed bumps on Brandenburg. That would need to be passed on to the City’s Traffic Engineer. Lenae Huebner ~ Her property backed up to the park. She asked if staff had already conceptualized how they thought the property should be planned out as far as the jogging trails were concerned and where they would be most appropriate based on the topography. Ric pointed out on the site plan where he foresaw the possible construction of trails and other amenities. Discussion followed regarding whether there was enough money to put in a full walking/jogging trail as well as other amenities initially (such as a playground) or if there would only be enough money for either one or the other. Ric stated that flyers could be sent out to everyone in attendance to get them to rank which amenities they felt were most important. He stated that he had held a lot of public hearings and playgrounds, walkways, security lighting, and basketball courts were usually the most important items. Victoria Podsim ~ She was in favor of the walking trails going in, but also wanted to know about the possibility of a Frisbee golf course. They are relatively inexpensive to put in and are being installed in many parks. Mary Hill ~ She said that she did not want to attract any more students to the neighborhood because of past problems and a Frisbee golf course might do that. She would rather keep the park more family oriented. Shelley Cox ~ She felt that a balance of different amenities would be appropriate because there were students as well as families in the neighborhood. Larry McNeese ~ He said he had been to numerous parks and asked if tennis courts were not popular. In the most recent Recreation, Park, and Open Space Master Plan it was predicted that the city had enough tennis courts, but courts could certainly be requested. The average cost is about $35,000 - $40,000 per court. Shelley Cox ~ She felt that ranking the amenities was a good idea. Ric said that this would be done and asked that everyone put their address on the sign- in sheet in order to receive ranking information. Walter Cox ~ He liked the idea of a basketball court in the park. Page 3 Unidentified ~ He would rather have a tennis court than a basketball court. Josh Hollinger ~ He had walked the creek area and when it rains, it is very muddy and hard to enjoy the creek. He wanted to know if there was some way that the creek could be dug out, the ground around it leveled out, and shrubs planted. This could be considered but it would take a lot of work. Then, perhaps some quick-growing grass could be seeded out there. There were a few things that could be done to make it more attractive and easier to get in and out, as well as clean, after it rains. Mary Hill ~ She asked if there was some way to put in a dog water fountain. Yes, a special fountain is made with a doggie drinking bowl and in the last few years, that is all that is being installed. Unidentified ~ She asked if there was anything that could be done to have dog owners clean up after their pets. This is a growing issue. Pet waste stations could be installed to encourage people to do that. Mary Hill ~ She wanted to know if the amenities and features could be laid out in a circular area instead of a square or rectangular shape (except for the basketball court). The playground could be almost any shape and the shelter could be six-sided. Chrissy Thodrsell ~ She was also a fan of the walking/jogging trails with adequate safety lighting. Steve Beachy asked how everyone found out about the meeting. The doorhangers and the signs were the main response. He explained that there would be a second meeting. Ric stated that if anyone had neighbors who would be interested in participating in the ranking, a ballot could be mailed to them as well. He encouraged everyone to go out and look at some of the city’s other neighborhood parks in order to get some ideas. Unidentified ~ He asked if there were other parks similar in size to this 13-acre site. Southern Oaks was sixteen acres and Edelweiss Park was ten acres. Mary Hill ~ She asked if there was parking for the park users at Jack and Dorothy Miller Park, other than the school parking lot. The school parking lot or on- street parking along the street are all that are available. Steve thanked everyone for coming to the public hearing. 3. Adjourn. The public hearing adjourned at 7:52 p.m. Page 4