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7.a)2) Budget Changes for Lilleskogen Park Project Meeting Date: 9/18/2012 Agenda Item: � � 1 �� J City Council Agenda Report City of Scandia 14727 209�' St. North Scandia, MN 55073 (651) 433-2274 Action Requested: Discuss recommendations from the Park and Recreation Committee concerning budget changes for the Lilleskogen Park Project. Deadline/ Timeline: N/A Background: • At their September 10, 2012 meeting, the Park and Recreation Committee heard a report from its Lilleskogen Park subcommittee, and passed a motion to request changes to the 2013 budget for the park project (see draft minutes, attached.) • The 2012 budget and CIP allocates a $4,000 from the Park Capital Improvement Fund for cash contributions for construction of the parking lot, with an assumption that other costs would come from grants or donations of cash or services. This has not yet been spent. • The draft 2013 budget and CIP allocates $5,000 for the project, most likely to be used to provide part of the match for grants. • The current balance of the Park Capital Improvement Fund is $12,936.02. The only source of revenue for this fund has been park dedication fees. No new revenue is projected. Recommendation: The Council should discuss the request. The Council could decide to transfer funds from elsewhere (such as the Capital Improvement Fund) if you want to provide additional resources for the project. Attachments/ • Excerpt of Draft Minutes of September 10, 2012 Park and Materials provided: Recreation Committee Meeting • Quotes, Prairie Restorations and Helke Tree Service Contact(s): Alex Bildeaux, Chair, Park and Recreation Committee (651 433-2121) Prepared by: Anne Hurlburt, Administrator (lilleskogen funding) Page 1 of 1 09/14/12 September 10,2012 Scandia Park and Recreation Committee Page 2 of 5 REPORTS a) Chair's Report Bildeaux reported that no action items were presented at the August 21, 2012 Council meeting. b) Committee Reports 1)Lilleskogen Park Subcommittee Lee reported that based on a recent joint meeting with the subcommittee and Friends of Scandia Parks,he is requesting that the priority project of completing the parking lot at Lilleskogen be replaced with"grubbing" the park. Lee presented two estimates for the work: • Prairie Restoration $14,000 • Helke's Tree Service $ 8,000 Lee explained that the two contractors have very different approaches;Prairie Restoration would spray the reed canary grass this fall ($1,500), remove buckthorn and lightly edit fallen trees this winter($9,750), and spray the remaining buckthorn next fall($2,500 to $3,500). Helke's propose to mow the north side of the property, remove fallen trees�nd grind out the stumps. Lee recommended that the Committee determine the specifications for"grubbing"before awarding the work. Vogen added that AmeriCorps can provide an experienced crew to selectively remove non-native species within the park. He stated that a crew of five natural resource experts can work at a rate of$900 a day. Vogen estimated the work could take five days time. There may be grant money in the Legacy Fund which could provide for this. The Committee agreed to investigate this approach. White stated that he would attend the September 18 Council meeting to request approval of funds for"grubbing"Lillesko�en Park: Motion by Lee,seconded by Rasmussen, to approach the Council with a request for$15,000 to proceed with the clearing of Lilleskogen Park. This would increase the Park Capital Improvement Fund Budget for 2413 from$5,000 to $15,000. The motion carried 6-0. 2)Scandia Community Market-Promotional Ideas No report was given due to Community Market representative Pam Arnold's absence. 3) Grant Writing Subcommittee White reported that no formal action has begun with the Friends of Scandia Parks and Trails regarding grant writing. Tom Triplett added that it will be a multi-organizational effort and will begin soon. Sonia Borg stated that some correspondence of ideas has started. c) Staff Reports 1) Summer Recreation Program Park and Recreation Coordinator Laurie Monson reported that 112 youth participated in the summer programs. Seventeen classes were held and three cancelled due to low enrollment (Art Adventure, Geocaching and a Cleat Kids session). Monson recommended that Lakamaga offer a water adventure class next year in place of the geocaching class. Committee members offered ideas such as trap shooting and fishing as options for next year. Prairie L; Restorations, lnc. �X� P.O. Box 95 • Scandia,MN 55073 Office: 651-433-1435 Fax: 651-433-1436 Lilleskogen Park Restoration Buckthorn Removal Proposal Ideas and Cost Estimate Thanks for the opportunity to submit a cost estimate for buckthorn removal and reed canary spraying at the Lilleskogen Park. After looking at the park there is a good amount of buckthorn throughout the park. There are two species of buckthorn present both Glossy and European. The Glossy buckthorn is mainly in the wetter areas while the European buckthorn is mostly in the wooded areas. Both species need to be removed as part of the parks restoration. I am proposing that the buckthorn be cut this winter over frozen ground allowing for the use of tracked skid steers to assist in the removal process. Since there is a desire to restore the wetland in the middle of the park to a native plant community where fire will be a management tool I am proposing the buckthorn be cut piled and burned on site. The buckthorn should be cut and taken to the future parking lot area and burned in one pile. Smaller buckthorn seedlings and saplings will be cut with a clearing saw and left to break down on site. The buckthorn with steams larger than 1 inch will be treated with herbicide to kill the stump. Along with the buckthorn removal process most of the woody derbies from broken down dead trees will be added to the burn pile to help clean up the site. Any good fire wood material can be saved and piled in the parking lot for the public to have at no charge. If burning the material is not an option it can be stock piled to be hauled away or chipped and reused for walking trails throughout the park. Hauting and chipping is not something PRI is capable of on a large scale. We would need to find a sub contractor to complete this task. 1 estimate the cutting piling and burning of the buckthorn and other woody debris to cost around$9,750.00 plus tax. The middle of the park is dominated by a reed canary wetland. As part of the long term plan to restore the wetland to a native plant community the reed canary needs to be killed off. There are many ways to do this; I am recommending the area be sprayed this fall. This is a very effective time of year to kill reed canary. In the 2013 growing season we will be able to determine how much if any native plants are present on the site. This will be a good first step in the restoration process. I estimate the cost of the 2012 fall reed canary spraying to be around$1,500.00. r. .: a�- j, , Bringing people together with the land �� '° . itf�y�y:6�, ��"`c�ri'rit��.`;. Prairie Restorations, lnc. `}l� P.O. Box 95 • Scandia,MN 55073 Office: 651-433-1435 Fax: 651-433-1436 After a woodland has been cleared of mature buckthorn there will need to be follow up herbicide treatments to kill new seedlings and the buckthorn that was to small to be stump treated during the initial removal. Buckthorn has a slightly longer growing season than most other woodland plants. We utilize this trait to our advantage by spraying the buckthorn later into the fall after most of the native plants have went dormant for the year. Since buckthorn has spread everywhere there will always be a need to manage the woods to keep buckthorn out. However after 3-4 years of more intense management the woodland can usually be managed for buckthorn at a much lower cost. It is very hard to come up with an accurate estimate of the buckthorn spraying costs for the next several years. However I estimate the fall buckthorn spraying in 2013 to cost between$2,500-3,500 plus tax. After the removal this fall winter and seeing how things look in the spring I will be able to give a much more precise number. To summarize the cost estimates above. 1. 2012 Fall reed canary spraying$1,500.00 2. 2012/2013 Fall/Winter buckthorn and light editing of wooded areas$9,750.00 plus tax. 3. 2013 Buckthorn fall spraying between$2,500-3,500 plus tax '� ------_ �-- J in Sykora Land Management Coordinator Prairie Restorations Inc. r. .: ''�" s. � � .. :� � =. , Bringing people together with the land ' �tl r'1,}�!��, �f`,ct1�7t�<<:� Helkes Tree Service, Inc. 20487 Olinda Tr. N. Marine, 55047 Phone# 651-433-3472 JudyMStH@frontiernet.net 9/10/2012 2 � �51�G��p�'S 5330 Scandia Parks& Recreation 14727 209th St N Scandia, MN 55073 Description Qty Cost Total North side from center traii to Scandia Traii -��e��.,\ 5,000.00 5,000.00 Remove down trees �- 1,500.00 1,500.00 5��^F' �r��°��-" �y�� 1,500.00 1,500.00 Sales Tax � 0.00 0.00 $8,000.00