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<br /> <br /> <br />Councilmember Dunsworth stated she was struggling with the “bells and whistle” type amenities versus the <br />items that were strictly needed to improve the park. She understood it would be great to have a splash pad at <br />Lions Park, but also understood there were other parks in the City that were in dire need of improvements. She <br />questioned how the City Council prioritized funding and projects in order to meet the needs of the community. <br /> <br />Councilmember Jacobsen supported the completion of Lions Park and the splash pad. Fink reported the City <br />could seek outside funding from the Lions to assist with this project. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dunsworth stated she was open to the entire plan and understood the funding would have to <br />be further discussed. Fink commented there were some parks that had deficits and the Council would have to <br />discuss what priorities should move forward and when to invest in these parks. <br /> <br />Councilmember Burg explained it may benefit the City to purchase the equipment needed to allow the Public <br />Works Department to make its own park and way finding signs. <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson stated the splash pad was her number one priority and understood this would have a huge <br />impact. She anticipated that all members of the community would take advantage of this amenity. Second, <br />she wanted to see the ballfields completed at Hansen Park because the fields were in terrible condition at this <br />time. After these two items she believed the Council would have to go park by park and assess what can be <br />done to improve or enhance each park. <br /> <br />Councilmember Burg asked how much Creek View would cost. Fink reviewed the cost and noted this park <br />would only be about one acre in size. <br /> <br />Councilmember Jacobsen stated he saw this as a win. <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson commented the Council would have to evaluate if the cost was worth the headache this dog <br />park would create. <br /> <br />Councilmember Jacobsen indicated there was a great benefit to the community having a dog park. He believed <br />the one acre park would be sufficient and would allow residents in New Brighton to utilize this amenity instead <br />of driving outside of the community. <br /> <br />Councilmember Allen stated 41% of residents owned a dog. <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson appreciated the fact the proposed dog park would be heavily used but feared the adjacent <br />neighborhood would not support the additional traffic. Fink stated the top three requests she receives from <br />residents were for pickleball, splash pad and a dog park. <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson questioned how the Council felt about updates to the Community Center. She understood the <br />expense for the renovations was quite high, but she believed this would be a great investment. <br /> <br />Councilmember Burg agreed stating the Community Center was a great amenity in New Brighton. <br /> <br />Councilmember Allen stated the Community Center was the most highly used facility in New Brighton year <br />round. He thanked staff for their tremendous work on the Parks Master Plan and for providing the Council <br />with a great vision for the future. He supported the City completing the planning on the four parks that needed <br />reconfiguring. In addition, he suggested the City create a schedule for when the neighborhood centers and <br />pavilions will be replaced/constructed. He recommended safety, maintenance and ADA issues be considered a