CCP 11-09-09 - Laserfiche WebLink

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-4 - City Forester, Rick Wriskey retired September 30th. He will be missed. In the 2005 storm, he saved the City 3 million dollars in the cleanup efforts. Council met and did interviews with the Economic Development Commission that is being reorganized. Nine people were selected and will start January 1st. There were 13 candidates. All were very good. We are excited to have business owners (who don't have to be residents)part of this Commission. There is one opening on the Planning Commission and we have started the interview process. We had good discussion at the Council meeting last night about the Golf Course. There are many rumors going around about selling the golf course. There was discussion,but a decision was never made to sell it. Staff brought excellent information to the meeting and Burg's impression from the meeting was that the Council was in favor of maintaining the Golf Course for an indefinite period of time. Next Monday, October 19th,the League of Women Voters will be holding a candidate forum for New Brighton. They will hold one for the School Board on Thursday, October 22nd Burg ran into Scott Budzynski(former Parks, Recreation and Environmental Commission member). His brother was the builder chosen for the home that was built for"Extreme Makeover". Scott Budzynski was responsible for getting all the volunteers together. Burg gave kudos to the Budzynski Family for being part of this; it was a really big honor. The show will be aired in January. Frischman stated she was at the meeting last night where we talked about the future viability of the Golf Course. She inquired of Burg if she felt the Council was in favor of keeping the golf course. Burg said her impression was that everyone was satisfied that the golf course is an asset to the City. Burg did state there is an election coming up and things can change with a different Council. Frischman inquired about the discussion of whether green fees should be raised. Burg stated her opinion was that if you raise green fees, you loose rounds of golf. Fees have to stay within the market. Burg thought staff did a good job of explaining that. Can't raise rates with the type of facility you have. It is a tough business. Frischman said many on the Commission were actively involved in the master plan for the Northwest Quadrant. Council approved the Long Lake trail. Frischman would like to remind the Council that the Parks, Recreation and Environmental Commission and Trails Committee would love to be involved in these kinds of projects. Residents are involved in the Trails Committee and it is a way to give them a voice in what they would like to see in the community. Burg said she was happy to relay this info to the Council. Breuer stated that Councilmember Doffing did recommend that this would go back to the Trails Committee,but Public Works Director Wyffels indicated we need to move forward on this. Staff was involved with the decision to have a bituminous path as opposed to the original woodchip path because it was very cost effective. The trail may not be maintained during the winter. Breuer stated the bids came in low, so it is still a possibility that a bike trail could be added to a portion of this trail. Four easements were required to make this project work.