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Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes Page 7 <br />April 10, 2024 <br />10. Announcements <br />11. Adjourn Regular Meeting <br />Moved by Commissioner Loidolt and seconded by Commissioner Niziolek to adjourn the <br />regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission at 7:52 p.m. Motion carried 6-0. <br />12. Work Session <br />The work session meeting of the Elk River Parks and Recreation Commission was called to order at <br />8:01 by Chair Anderson. <br />12.1 Athletic Facilities Master Plan <br />Mr. Stremcha shared he wanted to reiterate some of the key points from the presentation at the last <br />meeting. These are concepts and features that we want to include in the future. When we talk about <br />tilting a field 10 degrees to the east, that is something that will come up with the construction of the <br />complex and not something conceptually we’re going to decide on today. The number and type of <br />fields are the features that will help guide where the needs are. Conceptually as we look 10 years from <br />now what do we want to see in these park improvements? We still need to look at how we’re going to <br />raise the funds. <br />Commissioner Loidolt likes all the plans and has shown them to people and wants to start building <br />them now. The baseball fields haven’t been redone and need to be upgraded. Since the baseball field <br />is in a big plan, he would like to see a smaller scale to get it done sooner because there is a need for a <br />premiere baseball field. He asked if these plans have been shared with Elk River Youth Baseball. Mr. <br />Stremcha said we based the number of fields from a study done last year. The overall thing to keep in <br />mind with this plan is sequencing. We cannot do the construction at Oak Knoll until PT Complex has <br />a soccer/lacrosse field. The improvements need to be sequentially done. <br />Commissioner Niziolek shared that one of the things he struggles with is the amount of money spent <br />on parking when looking at the recreation percentage. Mr. Stremcha said that stems from the concept <br />of being okay with gravel, grass, or paved lots, the vision is that they are paved. Commissioner <br />Niziolek is concerned that the big price tag on paving a parking lot versus providing a recreational <br />activity. Mr. Stremcha shared the number of off-street parking spaces required for tournaments and <br />utilization is no different than the FT Center. A significant portion of the property is going to be <br />parking but the size of the budget for parking will be contingent on the level of service that’s <br />provided. The parking lots could start as gravel lots in phase one and then be paved in phase ten. <br />Commissioner Niziolek is concerned about DAAC and moving it away from a 4-field complex. He <br />feels that DAAC and Oak Knoll draw people into town and there is great value in that for our <br />community. <br />Mr. Stremcha shared that the future of the fairgrounds is unknown, and that parcel of land goes hand <br />in hand with DAAC. There is hesitation in planning DAAC based on what could happen with the <br />neighboring lot. The softball needs that were discussed with that user group were to consolidate their <br />Page 9 of 125