Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 03/15/1984

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March 5 Quad City Rec. Board Meeting Page Four I I I I I i I I I I I i Anoka Park Board & different associations. Mr. Zahn pointed out that the City of Anoka has a bikeway system and they are always in the process of actively pursuing grants for continued development. The last item A1 Zahn talked about was the positive response of the Park Tour whereby the Park Board invited the City Council to visit the facilities during the time they are being used to find out exactly what's going on at these fields and what has to be done. The results of this are then brought back and put together during June. Butch Brandenburg prepares the Capital Improvements Projects which are rated and prioritized by the Park Board at their meeting and this is put together for the budgetary year in July. Mr. Steve Schwarze, representing the Anoka Area Athletic Association, commented that there is a tremendous need for a softball slow pitch program for high school girls. He explained there has been a lot of very positive response and he questioned why there aren't any softball programs for boys also. He men- tioned a very large concern on his part was if the John Ward Fields are going to be renovated after the football season is done. The problem facing the Athletic Association as far as Mr. Schwarze is concerned is that the City of Anoka and the surrounding areas are short approximately ten ballfields in order to accommodate the needs they have. He asked if the City of Anoka would consider the possibility of developing another complex at the 320 acre North Park. One of their biggest problems last year was the Junior High School Girls Softball Program where inadequate fields were being used to play their games. Problems arise when you have soccer and softball on the same fields and you have a tremendous amount of womens, girls, boys and mens programs all running at the same time. There was discussion by the Board that Champlin starts all of their programs in the first and second grade and softball and baseball is offered to both girls and boys. They provide softball for the boys through elementary to high school. Mr. Schwarze mentioned his sons play in the soft- ball program in Champlin. Merle Prochniak from the Andover Parks and Recreation Board asked how they can communicate to their residents that the City of Anoka's facilities are built for the recreation program for the Anoka citizens and not the City of Ramsey or Andover. He feels it would be helpful to them if the City of Anoka would state they use their own facilities, thus putting them in a position of either paying for the facilities or building their own. I I I I I I Discussion followed regarding the needs of the City of Andover. Jim Schrantz stated that no one has come to the City of Andover and stated what the needs are for the City of Andover, how many ballfields they should have, where they should have them and what they should be providing. He said that a number of residents from other organizations have come in but nobody has really sat down and put together a need statement. Mr. Brandenburg then commented that it's not up to this Recreation Advisory Board to tell the City of Andover how many fields they have to build and where they should be located. Mr. Brandenburg stated that the needs assessment could be based on a participation ratio. Mr. Steve Schwarze is going to provide the number of participants in the AYAA Program to Jim Schrantz to help in establishing some type of plan in meeting these needs. Ted Rouse from the Ramsey Youth Association then expressed his concern regard- ing the RYAA Program and the demands they have to meet for the needs of the people in the Ramsey area. They do have a boy's fifth and sixth grade soft- ball program which is very successful and they are working with Champlin in playing their games. They have to use the Champlin fields as their home field