Minutes - Council - 10/24/1995 - Laserfiche WebLink

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have to be him on the Park and Recreation Commission, but the appointment should be given to someone who has the vision to change. City Adminisl~'ator Schroeder noted Mr. Droegemueller's comment about the needs of the City's youth not being met. He felt that was not accurate. RYAA came before Council with 12 to 15 items to be addressed and all have been addressed. Earlier this evening, the Capital Improvements Program was on the agenda. Not all the documents for it are done, but if they were, you would see that several large ticket items are budgeted for the youth; $100,000 is allocated for Central Park in 1996, either for lighting or expansion. The City is addressing these concerns. Also, a group of high school students conducted a survey about what people would like to see in the City of Ramsey and those results will be published in the Ramsey Resident. About 70% of the respondents felt that axil development should be a top priority and a very low percentage felt that ball fields should be a high priority. Mr. Schroeder commented on the 80-acre park south of 153rd and suggested it will be developed similar to Central Park. The Park and Recreation Commission has a firm belief that you cannot address one facet of the parks. The issue tonight is "does Council take the recommendations of the Park and Recreation Commission or do they change that direction at this point?" "I would suspect that if the Park and Recreation Commission recommend a particular person on the Commission and who showed up is a different person, that wouldn't provide for a good start. If you want to change the method of how Commissioners are seated, you need to make that change at the beginning of the year. Councilmember Beyer stated that one of her options would be to override the Park and Recreations Commission's recommendation or send it back to the Commission to ask why they made the decision they did. Another option is the Council could appoint the person recommended by the Commission and then direct staff to amend City Code to allow for more commission members on the Park and Recreation Commission. Councilmember Beahen commended Mr. Ostrum for getting involved in his new community; however, she expressed a concern as to how it appears to residents of long standing. Their contributions to the community have been overlooked. Mr. Osmun stated he would be happy to withdraw if it would make Council feel more comfortable. He added that there was a lengthy interview plus the Commission met about a half hour prior to making the decision. He did not see age as relevant. He felt he could represent the youth organization and added that he would like to attend one of their meetings. He stated that parks and recreation should be a high priority and he did not see limitations of being a resident for only two months. He suggested placing limitations on the application if they are going to apply. Councilmember Peterson suggested maybe a committee needs to meet with the Park and Recreation Commission and justify that the interviewing was a fair process and whether or not we feel a permanent seat should be given to a group. Mayor Hardin could not believe the Commission would make a decision to spite a group. He felt it was ludicrous that this would even be suggested. The Commission met - they deliberated and they asked final questions. They made a decision based on that and they recommended appointing Mr. Ostmm. He added that he does not have a problem with adding an extra commissioner or at adding an ex officio member of the RYAA. Mr. Baack re-emphasized to Mr. Ostmm that the problem they have is not personal; their concern is with the process He stated that the RYAA wants to work with the City and the Park and Recreation Commission. The Association serves every child in Ramsey. City Council/October 24, 1995 Page 18 of 19