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Parks commission approves CIP adjustments, moves Colby Hills funds and postpones McNite fencing
Summary
Commissioners approved a consolidated motion to reprioritize the parks capital improvement plan: move $25,000 for Colby Hills to 2027, postpone McNite fencing and dugouts to 2034, reallocate $45,000 from Southwood to 2028, push downtown open-space funding to 2030, add trash cans at PCU Pond and remove Tower Park funding pending water-tower clarity; the motion passed by voice vote.
At the meeting, the North St. Paul City Parks Commission voted to adjust several items in the parks capital improvement plan (CIP) after staff asked commissioners to prioritize projects without increasing the city tax levy.
Sarah Zaratka, parks staff, reviewed the CIP and said the commission should prioritize implementable projects given council direction not to raise the levy. She also described ongoing work with WSB, the city's contracted engineers, to complete geotechnical and environmental surveys for McNite design options.
The consolidated motion moved a $25,000 Colby Hills line item from 2032 into 2027 to cover ADA-related work and initial improvements, pushed McNite fencing and dugouts to 2034 in light of major design work and grant uncertainty, proposed taking $45,000 from Southwood and moving it to 2028, and shifted the downtown open-space funding from 2028 to 2030. Commissioners also directed adding trash cans at PCU Pond and removing Tower Park's $2,000 line item pending clarity about the water-tower project. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote; the meeting record shows no roll-call tally.
Commission members discussed phasing large projects (for McNite, beginning with the flex field and playground), the possibility of leveraging volunteer labor (Boy Scouts or local college building programs) to reduce costs, and waiting for a pending grant decision before making final commitments on the Casey Lake playground or rink. Board members noted estimated costs for replacing the observation deck (roughly $80,000–$100,000) and suggested moving that work nearer-term to 2028 rather than later years.
The commission asked staff to bring the revised CIP recommendations back to staff for review and then forward them to the city council for final consideration. No precise vote tallies were recorded in the minutes; the motion passed on a voice vote during the meeting.
What happens next: Staff will finalize recommended CIP adjustments, continue design and survey work for McNite with WSB, research potential volunteer or partnership labor for some projects, and present a budget summary and the revised CIP at a future meeting for transmittal to city council.
