06-13-2023 Work Session CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
Richfield, Minnesota
City Council Work Session
June 13, 2023
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Supple called the work session to order at 5:30 p.m. in the Bartholomew Room.
Council Members
Present:
Mary Supple, Mayor; Sean Hayford Oleary; Sharon Christensen; Simon
Trautmann; and Ben Whalen
Staff Present:
Katie Rodriguez, City Manager; Dustin Leslie, City Clerk; Amy Markle,
Recreation Services Director; Karl Huemiller, Recreation Programming
Manager; Rachel Lindholm, Sustainability Specialist.
ITEM #1
DISCUSSION OF DONALDSON PARK IMPROVEMENTS
Director Markle provided a presentation about Donaldson Park and spoke about the following:
park history, park usage, user groups, challenges, resident needs, reinvestment opportunities,
proposed process, and budget considerations. She stated the playground between the fields would be
moved from the middle of the fields to make room for a new building. Council Member Trautmann
preferred keeping it between the fields and finding a different solution for the building. Director Markle
spoke about the location of the playground limiting the building design but would revisit.
Council Member Whalen asked if the plans were being funded through CIP funds. Director
Markle confirmed.
Mayor Supple asked if these plans were already included in the budget. Director Markle
replied that they were already included in the budget approved by Council.
City Manager Rodriguez and Council Member Whalen discussed debt being used to fund
projects and the plan for it going forward.
City Manager Rodriguez spoke about the need to reinvest assets and avoiding facilities falling
into disrepair as there were a lot of facilities in the city that needed to be fixed.
Council Member Whalen spoke about allocating more funding to park maintenance and was
willing to put more into the budget using the regular budget rather than just CIP funds.
Council Member Trautmann stated the importance of playgrounds in the city for kids and
spoke about finding more ways to get people in the parks, such as food trucks.
City Council Work Session Minutes
-2- June 13, 2023
Council Member Hayford Oleary asked how full the east parking lot would usually get. Director
Markle replied that the parking lot was usually full during games. Council Member Hayford Oleary
stated staff could look at reducing parking spaces in the future when considering renovations.
Council Member Whalen stated he supported the process and agreed with Council Member
Trautmann that the playground should stay in the middle of the fields if possible. He further stated that
staff could look at reconfiguring the paths.
ITEM #2
DISCUSSION OF LOCAL SALES TAX AUTHORIZATION AND REFERENDUM
PLANNING
Director Markle provided an update to Council stating the question would have to go on the
ballot in 2024. She also spoke about the planned education campaign for residents.
Council and staff discussed needs for projects that would be funded by the proposed local
sales tax.
ITEM #3
SUSTAINABILITY PROJECT UPDATES
Sustainability Specialist Lindholm gave a presentation to Council focusing on ARPA Municipal
Building Energy Improvements and the Community Garden Pilot Project.
Council Member Whalen asked if there were reports to go with the ARPA improvements and if
there were high level lists of improvements that could be easily shared. Sustainability Specialist
Lindholm replied that there were reports for each building and that a spreadsheet of improvements
was being maintained.
Mayor Supple stated that lighting should be focused on the buildings and away from
neighborhoods. Sustainability Specialist Lindholm stated they would make sure of that and that the
lighting generally faces down.
Council Member Whalen asked if empty plots in the community gardens were due to lack of
interest or residents backing out. Sustainability Specialist Lindholm spoke about the community
gardens being a pilot project and expected more participation in the future.
Council Member Whalen asked if there were plans to expand the community gardens or
continue the pilot project as-is. Sustainability Specialist Lindholm replied the current garden has room
for expansion.
Council Member Trautmann stated he heard concerns from residents about community
gardens causing an increase in crime. He asked staff if there were any crime issues due to the
garden. Sustainability Specialist Lindholm stated there have been no issues related to crime.
City Council Work Session Minutes
-3-June 13, 2023
ADJOURNMENT
Mayor Supple adjourned the work session at 6:30 pm
Date Approved: June 27, 2023
Mary B. Supple
Mayor
Dustin Leslie Katie Rodriguez
City Clerk City Manager