Grand Marais park board members set their list of 2010 priorities during the April 6 meeting at the Rec Park. The list, which includes six projects, will be forwarded to city council for further consideration, but is dependent on available funding and requests from other city departments.
City Administrator Mike Roth explained the process to the board members, and urged them to rank the projects in order of priority, and even to add on to the five-item list he and parks manager
” Dave Tersteeg presented. “We don’t know when some of these projects will be done, or how much they’ll cost … but prioritizing them on a list implies an order of what and when we do things,” Roth said.
In addition to park staff, the meeting was attended by park board members Walt Mianowski (chair), Paul Anderson, Bill Lenz and Robin DuChien; Todd Miller and Carol Backlund were absent.
There was little disagreement that the projects included on the original list all had merit and needed to be done sooner rather than later. Most of the discussion, therefore, centered on the order in which to rank them.
The final list, in order, includes:
• R epaving of the main road west of Eighth Avenue into the
campground to the Sliding Hill entrance. Lenz said the road work is “very much needed — it’s what people see when they drive into the park.” Tersteeg backed up those comments by stating that users of the campground have commented negatively about the condition of the road not only to the park staff, but to friends and neighbors. “It’s a very real problem,” the park manager said.
Estimates for fixing the road range from $30,000 for a
simple overlay to $50,000 for inclusion of utility conduits,
Tersteeg said.
• U pgrading 10 to 20 sites to full hook-up and adequate
power. Tersteeg said he envisions phasing in the work, focusing on large sites, high-demand sites and sites with pre-existing conditions. Roth said it is unknown how much the project will cost — he has seen some campground upgrade concepts priced at $200,000 — but it will not be necessary to do all of the work at once. “We can decide how many sites to do when the cost is known,” he said.
Tersteeg said it’s not a real problem yet. “The demand for 50-amp sites is not an issue — we’re not turning anyone away because of it,” he said, adding that the power upgrades are “useless” and unnecessary in many sites where, for instance, the 30-foot lot can’t accommodate a 40-foot trailer anyway. There is a demand for sewer, however, but Tersteeg said campers are told to use the dump station when all of the sewered sites are occupied. Furthermore, he said, the utility work will pay for itself
relatively quickly due to the higher fees the city can charge
for the improved sites.
• P lan and design of a “community connection” in the form
of a pedestrian trail along the harbor. Lenz pointed out that this is in keeping with the recently adopted park master plan to establish a link between the Rec Park and the downtown area. Roth said the project might prove to be more costly than it appears, because at least two consultants will have to be hired: a civil engineer and a landscape architect. He also noted that the project under
discussion is for design and planning only, not actual
construction.
• I nstallation of a solar-powered hot water system on
bathhouse #4. Although the solar panels cost about $900 apiece, Tersteeg said grant money that has already been
awarded will pay for much of the cost. The project is
expected to get underway this fall.
• Safe harbor/marina concept plan. Park board members
agreed that work on the six-acre basin concept map needs to begin, but said it is really up to city council to decide when and how the process will move forward, and how it will be funded. Still, said Roth, it should be included on
the park board’s list. “If it’s not on the list, it’s not gonna
happen,” he said.
• P lan and design of a new park officeand marina facilities.
Realizing that once the marina is upgraded the office and other landside services will also need to be improved or built, park board members added this item to the original list. In the meantime, Tersteeg said he and his staff have been working to brighten up the existing office and lounge, and to offer more amenities.
Roth thanked the park board members for their work in compiling the list and offering their input. The priority list will now go to city council, which will compare and consider the requests from all of the departments and come up with one comprehensive list for long-term budgeting and planning.
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