Baxter City Council OKs park plan

BAXTER — A master plan for Oscar Kristofferson Park was approved, creating a template for what residents will expect to see there for recreation opportunities.

Last fall, the city agreed to use Widseth to complete a master plan for the park, which reviewed parking and safety with traffic flow, look at the park’s use and capacity and to create preliminary and then final plans along with costs to construct elements and maintain them.

A survey, a project website that accepted comments and an open house were all part of gathering input from residents and the plans were reviewed at open meetings of the Parks and Trails Commission and the City Council. Several options were presented. The parks commission recommended Option C with a double court surface in the northeast corner of the park and two additional batting cages. The commission noted court surfaces and the hockey rink should be designed as multi-sport surfaces so it could serve as a central roller rink in the future.

Contributed / City of Baxter

Jillian Reiner, Widseth landscape architect, who also presented the study information for the council’s vote on the dog park April 2 , walked the council and those attending the meeting through the findings and recommendations. Reiner said the crux of the study was to provide a road map that involved the community values and input. As part of the study, Widseth reviewed what was in place and developed three concepts following the public outreach efforts.

In following the parks commission’s preferred plan, Reiner presented the master plan to the City Council for consideration April 2. The master plan combined Option C and elements of Option B.

“We did hear from the public that they wanted to keep that softball field that was important,” Reiner said.

Two batting cages were added at an angle and potential angled parking where Reiner said people are already using it as a parking area. The master plan does a little realignment of the entrance for safety purposes.

“No pickleball? Council member Jeff Phillips asked.

Reiner said they couldn’t get six courts in but put in a dual court for basketball and pickleball. She noted there may be options for additional pickleball courts. Community Development Director Josh Doty also noted the parks commission favored the idea of having multiple options for any investment in a hard surface, noting the court on the park’s north side and the hockey rink.

“Pickleball was definitely a strong, strong interest with what we heard,” Doty said.

Reiner said people were excited about having things added to the park rather than taken away. The master plan also identifies a location for the warming house and potentially a restaurant facility.

Mayor Darrel Olson noted a couple of comments that caught his eye about placing the hockey rink to take advantage of shade or being out of the sun’s path and some noted refrigeration is used with the slab to make the ice last longer. Trevor Walter, public works director, said some cities do add refrigeration inside and for outside rinks, but of course that adds a cost.

Walter noted staff will use the plan to guide their actions. There isn’t a timetable or full costs laid out on the changes but it is what they will work toward.

Contributed

The council approved the master plan for Oscar Kristofferson Park on a 4-1 vote with Phillips opposed. Phillips said during the dog park discussion that he wasn’t going to vote to spend another dollar on dogs or boy’s baseball until there was equal consideration for recreational opportunities for girls.

The city planned four baseball fields for the park for some time, with one field not developed, the hockey rink went there. The hockey rink began to deteriorate and the city looked again at its long-term plan on next steps. So with the move to complete the fourth field, a new design was needed to find where the rink would go and what other changes could be made.

The city has talked about putting in the fourth baseball field with remodeled concession stand and press box for more than a decade. In changes proposed in 2015, the pavilion was expanded with a kitchen added, trees were removed and city staff recommended removing the basketball hoops saying people had other options elsewhere. The new pavilion was dedicated in July of 2016. The playground equipment was replaced in 2022.

Feedback on the park designs provided a look at priorities for residents. Those taking the survey noted what amenities they use now and what they’d like to see in the future. Comments included those looking for more pickleball.

Comments received on Concept A noted it was too expensive, that they wanted to keep the trail system and that the sand volleyball courts are not used often. Instead of volleyball, comments favored a basketball/tennis/pickleball option in the park’s northeast corner. Other comments focused on parking and having more spots closer to the batting cages and that parking is still a distance from the baseball fields.

1/3

2/3

3/3

Comments on Option B included the desire again to keep the existing trail system, add a trail from the east parking lot to the playground, add parking north of the batting cages, and a question as to whether four batting cages were really needed. Other comments noted the need for the warming house to have bathrooms. Comments for Option A and B included to make sure there was handicap parking in the main parking lots.

Comments on Option C included keeping the trail system, adding a trail from the east parking lot to the playground and adding a parking lot north of the batting cages, and to finish the walking/biking trail between the concession stand and the west road. Continued wishes to make sure there was handicap parking in the main lots and a question of how skaters would get to the recreation rink from the warming house, with a recommendation to switch the handicap parking and the recreation rink locations.

The council also approved the playset replacement at Loren Thompson Park for $156,740. The city noted demolition is expected to start Sept. 12 with the installation for the new playground equipment planned to start Sept. 16 and be completed by Sept. 27.

Contributed / City of Baxter

Renee Richardson, managing editor, may be reached at 218-855-5852 or renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com. Follow on Twitter at @DispatchBizBuzz.