[00:00:00] **Chair Brown**: Calling the November 13 meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission to order. The mission of the Cottage Grove Parks and Recreation Commission is to create and promote policies, programs, and places that enable active living for a more vibrant community. Earlier this evening, we had feedback from residents on design concepts for our new Kingston Park building, which we'll have the opportunity to examine and discuss next month. But to get started for this evening, roll call. [Pause for roll call]. All right, has everyone had the opportunity to review our agenda? [00:00:45] **Commissioner Kelly**: Yes. [00:00:46] **Commissioner Adam**: Okay, motion. [00:00:48] **Chair Brown**: Okay, I have a motion to approve the agenda. [00:00:50] **Commissioner Deb**: Second. [00:00:51] **Chair Brown**: Okay, second. Any additional discussion? Okay, those in favor? [00:00:55] **Commissioners**: Aye. [00:00:56] **Chair Brown**: Those opposed? Okay, motion carries; agenda is approved. We have two sets of meeting minutes from August and from September. Does anyone have any questions, comments, or corrections on our minutes? [00:01:10] **Commissioner Justin**: Okay, then I'm looking for a motion to approve. [00:01:12] **Commissioner Kelly**: Make a motion to approve. [00:01:14] **Commissioner Adam**: Okay, I'll second. [00:01:15] **Chair Brown**: Thanks. Those in favor? Those opposed? Okay, motion carries; our minutes are approved. Any open forum this evening? [00:01:25] **Zac Dockter**: None tonight. [00:01:27] **Chair Brown**: Okay, then we can start with our first presentation item, which is the Community Gardens. [00:01:32] **Zac Dockter**: Thank you, Chair, members of the Commission. We've talked about community gardens in the past, as recently as 2021, but we've really been talking about it since 2001 when we took out our last community garden. Cottage Grove was actually one of the first communities with a community garden; it was out by the old tank farms by the community pool on the west side of town. We've been talking about it ever since. In 2021, the Commission expressed openness to the idea of another community garden but desired to see a grassroots effort from the community and from volunteers. With that, we had a group come forward to us several months ago, and we've been meeting back and forth with the Hope Garden group, as they call themselves. I would just invite members of The Hope Garden to go through their presentation, and then the Commissioners can ask questions and give feedback. [00:02:30] **Ignacius Kadama**: Good evening. My name is Ignacius Kadama, 26-year resident of Cottage Grove at 6593 Clover Circle. [00:02:38] **Daryl Verhoven**: And I'm Daryl Verhoven. I've been here just past my 20th anniversary in September, and I live over on 9686 Indian Boulevard across from Grey Cloud Elementary. Thank you all, Commissioners, for allowing us to come up and speak to you about what we're doing. The first thing I would like to do is recognize—Ignacius and I are just two people that are a committee that are part of what we've coined our "Hope Gardens." I’d like to ask the rest of the committee members to please just stand up and be recognized. [Committee stands]. Great, and thank you. As Zac mentioned, this has been an effort for the committee here to try to find a place to allow people to garden, and that is our major goal here tonight is to try to get your approval and authorization. I want to point out our little caption at the very bottom there: "bringing a diverse group of people together in harmony with nature." I think that was from our last meeting about a week and a half ago, and that is the overwhelming feeling this group has about gardening. [00:03:50] **Daryl Verhoven**: So, who are we? We put together some quick bullets. We are super passionate about gardening. As a matter of fact, a lot of the group here uses the name "farming" because they're used to doing this on a much larger scale, usually as a family. We're people in need of a space to grow. There are some other gardens around the community, but they vary from small 8x8 plots to 30x30 plots. We’re looking for family-sized gardens—primarily to grow food for ourselves, though sometimes we share it. The other big thing is that these people are very serious about gardening. Some stay out there for hours tending to plots to ensure the harvest is successful. [00:04:45] **Ignacius Kadama**: And what are we asking for? We have three simple asks: first, for permission to establish one or more community gardens—we intend to start small with just one; second, an agreement by the City to plow and till the area in the spring and fall; and third, an agreement by the City to provide water at the location. We are willing to share more based on the conversations we’ve had with Zac. [00:05:15] **Daryl Verhoven**: You're probably wondering: where are you guys thinking about doing this? Well, Zac was so kind to share with us a list of multiple parcels of land here in Cottage Grove. We are very interested in having it primarily for Cottage Grove residents. We visited the entire list, ranked them, and we came up with the Meadow Grass Park area, which is off of 70th. It gives us a very good amount of space. We have a Master Gardener here, by the way. It’s about 200 feet by 50 feet. We have some ideas for plot sizes, but we need this authorization first. [00:06:10] **Ignacius Kadama**: When? We are looking at the beginning of the gardening season, which usually happens in early May, running through October. Plowing would be done slightly before the season starts and then again at the end of October. This slide here, we wanted to give you a feeling of the spirit and passion of what this really means internally to the people here. We hope this resonates with you. That is our presentation. You don't have to just ask Ignacius and me; this group is very vocal if you want to ask them questions too. [00:07:00] **Chair Brown**: Well, thank you so much for coming and sharing your vision. It's exciting to have community members who want to engage with the parks in this way. I had just a couple of questions. You have a core group, but would the garden be just for your group or would it be open to additional community members as well? [00:07:20] **Daryl Verhoven**: I think the initial outlay was that this group would help decide who is in it. We didn't know if the Commissioners were going to say it must be primarily Cottage Grove residents. We haven't nailed that down. We have a desire to talk to Zac about sign-up capabilities the City may already have, and if there's a charge for the plot, which we haven't discussed yet. Does that answer your question? [00:07:55] **Ignacius Kadama**: I can also build on that. Initially, we're looking at dividing the area into 20 or 30 plots, which goes way beyond the group that is here. This is just the committee that will help manage the influx. For certain, as Daryl said, it would be open to Cottage Grove as a whole. [00:08:15] **Chair Brown**: And you mentioned needing a water supply and plowing, but what about storage for tools or how will you manage waste removal? [00:08:24] **Daryl Verhoven**: I would like our Master Gardener to answer that. [00:08:28] **Ed Mayatt**: I'm Ed Mayatt, 8208 Callaway in Woodbury, and I represent the Washington County Master Gardeners. We just did our budget for next year and budgeted $2,000 for tools, storage, fertilizer, and soil analysis. [00:08:45] **Chair Brown**: Wonderful, thank you. Did you say that included storage like a shed? [00:08:50] **Ed Mayatt**: A 4x6 storage shed for the garden tools. Our experience is that most gardeners live in apartments and don't have places to store tools, or they don't even have tools. We've seen people out there with kitchen spoons. We’ll supply the tools. [00:09:10] **Daryl Verhoven**: And regarding the tractor and tilling, we spoke to Zac about the availability of a tractor twice a year. For water, because that big water tower is there, we were hoping for some type of spigots. Zac had another idea about a large tank of water he would fill up, but our desire is for a spigot if possible. [00:09:40] **Commissioner Kelly**: Can I ask—you said you're looking for family-sized gardens. What is a family-sized garden? You also mentioned you could fit 20 to 30 of them on this plot? [00:09:50] **Ed Mayatt**: The last garden we put together was 9 feet by 14 feet. The average yield was 120 pounds of vegetables. That is what we consider a family-sized plot. [00:10:10] **Daryl Verhoven**: Ed, could you say what the number of plots in that example was? [00:10:15] **Ed Mayatt**: We started with 16 to get our feet wet, and this year we expanded to 48. [00:10:20] **Commissioner Deb**: If I'm thinking about size-wise, the only community garden I'm familiar with is the one over by St. Thomas by the ice rink. Is that about 9 by 18? [00:10:30] **Ed Mayatt**: We visited about 20 community gardens in the metro area. There are all different sizes, but most are bigger than that. [00:10:40] **Commissioner Justin**: I have a question for you. If there is a family that wants to get involved but doesn't know much about gardening, will there be an opportunity for them to learn? [00:10:50] **Daryl Verhoven**: My wife and I started nine years ago and we had no clue—we killed house plants. Most gardeners are extremely collaborative. Now with Ed, the Master Gardener, he’ll be checking in and saying, "Hey, you need more nitrogen." [00:11:15] **Ignacius Kadama**: In addition, Mugi pointed out the resources for educating emerging farmers. [00:11:20] **Mugi Mtiga**: Hello, my name is Mugi Mtiga. I work with Washington County and I’m considered an emerging farmer. There is an Emerging Farmers Office that helps people get started. I’m also part of a group that mentors people. There are resources available, and I’m heavily involved in that. [00:11:50] **Commissioner Adam**: I have one quick question. You mentioned a possible charge for plots. If there is a charge, what would that money be used for? [00:12:00] **Daryl Verhoven**: Primarily the water. That’s a resource we depend on. I don't want to speak for the entire committee because we haven't nailed that down, but if we needed to collect money, we’d like it to go through someone like you because you have the infrastructure and separation of duties. [00:12:35] **Maret Nui**: Hi, I'm Maret Nui, 20-year resident of Cottage Grove. About the charge—if the Parks and Recreation department provides the water and the plowing, and Washington County provides resources, there may not even be a need to charge a fee. It’s just something to think about for unforeseen expenses. [00:13:10] **Commissioner Kelly**: I just have one more. Do you need any fencing to keep critters out? [00:13:15] **Ed Mayatt**: Most gardens need a six-foot fence for deer and chicken wire for rabbits. A garden this size would run about $3,000. There are grants available. The Woodbury garden got a $5,000 grant from the county for fencing. We would try to get grants before asking the City. [00:13:45] **Alyssa Wolf**: Can I jump in? My name is Alyssa Wolf, a Cottage Grove resident. I’m with Washington County Public Health, and we are that grant funder Ed is referring to. I work on the Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP). We have money earmarked for the upcoming season for community gardens, specifically for Cottage Grove. I’m very confident we can cover expenses like fencing. [00:14:25] **Chair Brown**: Any other questions or comments? Zac, can you let us know what next steps might be? [00:14:30] **Zac Dockter**: My ask, since the Commission wanted a volunteer group to bring this forward, is for direction on whether I should continue the conversation. If you want that to continue, we'll figure out the details and the timeline for spring. [00:14:55] **Commissioner Adam**: I like it. We’ve been talking about it for a while. Where exactly would it go at Meadow Grass? [00:15:05] **Daryl Verhoven**: There’s a flat spot up on top of the hill near the water tower on the west side of the playground. [00:15:15] **Commissioner Deb**: Motion to move forward. [00:15:18] **Commissioner Kelly**: I’ll second. It's wonderful. [00:15:20] **Chair Brown**: All right, thank you all for listening and for the great questions. [Applause]. [00:15:35] **Zac Dockter**: Moving into our action items, first up is our Mississippi Dunes Park naming. We are looking for an official name for the public land we acquired this past year. Following the park naming policy, we’ve had reviews in August and September. In November, we can provide a recommendation to Council. I have a letter from Commissioner David Olsen, who could not be here, and I offered to read it into the minutes. [00:16:10] **Zac Dockter**: [Reading letter] "Dear Commissioners, I believe the work we've done so far is inadequate for such a significant park. The names proposed refer to 'Mississippi Dunes Landing,' which feels boring to me. 'Mississippi Landing' is already used in many places in Minnesota. My request is that we slow this down. Let's have at least one additional meeting. This is the most significant park naming I’ve been involved with, and I think we can do better. Sincerely, David Olsen." [00:17:15] **Chair Brown**: I appreciate that feedback and I'm inclined to agree. I'm definitely open to taking some more time. What do y'all think? [00:17:25] **Commissioner Deb**: Yeah, I'm fine with that. It was a very thoughtful letter and he seems to feel strongly. Is there a deadline? [00:17:35] **Zac Dockter**: It’s on your timeline. [00:17:38] **Commissioner Adam**: I don't see any harm in waiting another month. [00:17:42] **Chair Brown**: I'll motion that we table the discussion until our December meeting. [00:17:45] **Commissioner Justin**: I'll second. [00:17:47] **Chair Brown**: Those in favor? Aye. Those opposed? Motion carries. [00:17:55] **Commissioner Kelly**: Can the City put something out to garner more options from the community? [00:18:05] **Zac Dockter**: I'll talk to our Communications team. I'm sure we can come up with an online survey. [00:18:15] **Zac Dockter**: Next, we have 2024 Playground Replacements. Three playgrounds: Nina's Park, Granada Park, and West Draw Park. We surveyed the community within a quarter-mile radius. [00:18:35] **Zac Dockter**: For Nina's Park, there were four designs. Preference was for Design 2 (Little Tikes). The top color choice was Electric, though Ocean was only one vote behind. [00:18:55] **Chair Brown**: Looking for a recommendation on Nina's. I liked Design 2 in Ocean. [00:19:02] **Commissioner Deb**: I like Design 3, but I don't have a color preference. [00:19:07] **Commissioner Adam**: I like Design 2 with the Ocean. [00:19:15] **Commissioner Justin**: There was a lot of feedback about accessibility. Is there something that can be done to make Design 2 more accessible? [00:19:25] **Zac Dockter**: All of these playgrounds have components that are accessible via transfer stations. We can add "pour-in-place" surfacing like we did at Ideal Park to make it more accessible. [00:20:10] **Commissioner Justin**: I like Design 2, but it would be nice to include kids of all abilities. What in Design 2 can someone in a wheelchair do? [00:20:20] **Zac Dockter**: I can go back to the vendor for Design 2 and ask about adding more pour-in-place and addressing handicap accessibility components. [00:20:45] **Chair Brown**: I’m looking for a motion to explore Design 2 with accessibility modifications in the Ocean color scheme. [00:20:55] **Commissioner Kelly**: Motion. [00:20:56] **Commissioner Deb**: Second. [00:20:58] **Chair Brown**: Those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. [00:21:05] **Zac Dockter**: Granada Park. Design 2 was the preferred design. We’re keeping the balance beam and Maypole from the 2015 update. The preferred color was Electric. [00:21:30] **Commissioner Kelly**: What does that little dragon/dinosaur do? [00:21:35] **Zac Dockter**: It’s a climber. [00:21:40] **Commissioner Deb**: I like Design 1 because it has separate pieces for different age groups. [00:21:50] **Commissioner Adam**: I like Design 4 because it’s different, but it doesn't have swings in the picture. [00:22:00] **Zac Dockter**: All playgrounds will have swings. [00:22:15] **Zac Dockter**: Kelly, can you start with your favorite? [00:22:20] **Commissioner Kelly**: I like 4 and 1. [00:22:22] **Commissioner Deb**: I like 1 and 2. [00:22:24] **Commissioner Adam**: 4 and 1. [00:22:26] **Commissioner Justin**: Let’s do Design 4 with a rope climbing addition in Forest Green. [00:22:35] **Chair Brown**: Is that a motion? [00:22:37] **Commissioner Justin**: Motion. [00:22:38] **Commissioner Adam**: Second. [00:22:40] **Chair Brown**: Those in favor? Aye. Motion carries. [00:22:50] **Zac Dockter**: West Draw Park. Design 4 received 59% of the votes. Color choice was Electric. [00:23:10] **Commissioner Kelly**: I loved the climbing wall on Design 4. That looks like a "Ninja" course. [00:23:25] **Commissioner Deb**: I like Design 4 because it has elements I haven't seen in other parks. [00:23:35] **Chair Brown**: Can we add shade to Design 4? [00:23:40] **Zac Dockter**: Yes, I can request that. [00:23:45] **Commissioner Adam**: Motion for Number 4 in Electric with added shade. [00:23:50] **Commissioner Kelly**: Second. [00:23:55] **Chair Brown**: Those in favor? Aye. Motion carries. [00:24:10] **Zac Dockter**: Next action item: E-Recreational Equipment. Following our workshop, the direction was to allow usage of e-scooters and ebikes but educate the public on etiquette and safety. I’ve looked at some signage options, including "self-check speed zones." [00:24:45] **Chair Brown**: I really liked the simplicity of adding ebikes to existing signs and the pilot program idea. I’d like to select a high-traffic trail area for a pilot. [00:25:20] **Commissioner Kelly**: Some signs are way too wordy. The simpler the better. I like "Share the Trail." [00:25:40] **Zac Dockter**: I’ll compile these, bring some designs back, and we’ll keep the conversation going. [00:26:00] **Chair Brown**: Action update on Cannabis/Tobacco use. [00:26:05] **Zac Dockter**: The Council took action to eliminate tobacco from the parks and set policy for cannabis in public spaces. It is now in effect. [00:26:25] **Zac Dockter**: Staff reports are submitted. I also received info from Commissioner David Olsen for the Washington County Parks meeting. [00:26:45] **Chair Brown**: Any commission comments? None. Summary from Council? [00:26:50] **Zac Dockter**: None, but I was at the meetings if you have questions. [00:26:55] **Chair Brown**: I’m looking for a motion to adjourn. [00:26:58] **Commissioner Adam**: Motion. [00:27:00] **Commissioner Deb**: Second. [00:27:02] **Chair Brown**: Those in favor? Aye. We are adjourned.