Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 02/08/2018

Home

Capital Improvement Program dollars, the Parks and Trails Legacy Fund appropriations are incorporated into the Unified Capital Budget and Unified Capital Improvement Plan. Negotiated Purchase Acquisition of land is costly and limited public funds must be used wisely. It is sometimes necessary to acquire land through condemnation, which can be a long and costly process. Whenever possible, regional park implementing agencies must make negotiated purchases based on appraisals by qualified appraisers to minimize the need for condemnation. State Bond Declarations The commissioner of Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB), through an order dated August 26, 2010, requires a state bond declaration to be recorded on the land that is acquired or improved with the state bonds. The declaration states that any lease or sale of the improved land must be approved by the commissioner of MMB while the declaration is in effect. The declaration must be in effect for 125% of the useful life of the improvement on the land that was financed with the state bonds. For example, if state bonds were used to build a picnic shelter, and the picnic shelter has a useful life of 20 years, the declaration on the land where the picnic shelter is located would be in effect for 125% of 20 years, which is 25 years. If the land is to be sold before the state bonds are paid off that financed the improvement, the MMB will ask for a pro -rated refund of the state bonds that financed the grant. To comply with the law, the Council will work with regional park implementing agencies on drafting declarations for each grant and will record them with the applicable land records office. A copy of the recorded bond declaration will be part of the Council's land records and part of MMB's records. A portion of the bond proceeds for the grant will pay the recording fee since this is a stipulation of using the state bonds and is ultimately the responsibility of the Council to ensure compliance with the law. Stewardship Use of Council grant funds is limited to the costs of acquisition and/or development of the Regional Parks System unit consistent with the Council -approved master plan. Grants for acquisition pay for the cost of real estate, relocation assistance, special assessments existing at the time land was designated for the regional system, land stewardship and legal fees and appraisals. Land stewardship is defined as boundary fencing or marking; stabilizing or rehabilitating natural resources to aid in reestablishing threatened natural resources or to prevent non -natural deterioration thereof; preventing the deterioration of existing structures; removal of unneeded structures, dangerous land forms or attractive nuisances; maintaining or closing existing roads; and developing the unit to support minimal recreational use, including access roads, parking lots, signage and restrooms until capital improvement funds are available to develop the Regional Parks System unit. Special Assessments Special assessments may be levied against parkland after its designation for the Regional Parks System. Such assessments are legitimate and grant -eligible when they are for benefits