Minutes - Parks and Recreation Commission - 01/14/2021

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Chair Bennett noted that additional land has been discussed for Central Park in past discussions, the main issues centered more on traffic management and parking for events. He stated that ARAA provided comments to staff and believed that additional work and discussion could occur with that group. He stated that the sense from ARAA is that right now additional field space is not needed. He stated that if additional fields were to be added, ARAA would look more towards artificial turf fields which would provide flexibility due to different weather conditions. He noted that ARAA is most interested in additional indoor space, whether that be through a community center or mixed-use space. He commented indoor space would be the number one want from ARAA at this point, therefore a commitment of $500,000 for this park space could take away from those other wants and needs in the community. He stated that he does like the idea of ghost platting as that would still provide a potential opportunity to add another field or two along with traffic and parking improvements which could then be done through Park Dedication. Parks & Assistant Public Works Superintendent Riverblood commented that in this instance the adjacent property would develop in R-1, which would be 80-foot-wide lots on City water, and therefore irrigation could be provided to any additional field space that may be added. He noted that the current well at the field does not have capacity for any more irrigation. He stated that ARAA has made the request that the City look at synthetic turf for additional fields. He noted that while there is additional cost to create that type of field, there are significantly lower maintenance needs, and impacts from weather. Chair Bennett asked if this would be a good value for the City and the overall community and whether it is needed now. Parks & Assistant Public Works Superintendent Riverblood reviewed details on land sales that occurred outside The COR in 2019 and 2020 and equated that to a per square foot cost for comparison purposes. Commissioner Sis stated that he would also support the ghost plat idea. He stated that there is not a firm plan for the exact layout of the adjacent property. He believed that would be a good conversation to have in order to assess needs over time. Commissioner Leistico asked when the appraisal was completed that was included in the case. Parks & Assistant Public Works Superintendent Riverblood commented that he believed that was completed in 2016 or 2017 and had a valuation of $118,000. He stated that the adjacent property owner rejected that proposal at that time and did not believe that was the correct valuation. Commissioner Leistico stated that there is quite a difference between that valuation and this proposal. She stated that this seems like a large amount of money when there are other huge endeavors in other areas of the park system. She stated that this is an opportunity but does not seem to fit in with the vision for the other parks. She stated that there would also be an added expense for irrigation as described by staff. She recognized that adding to Central Park has been a discussion, but this cost was not part of that discussion. Park and Recreation Commission/January 14, 2020 Page 5 of 7