OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Rochester Park Board Meeting - April 8, 2026

Boards and Commissions — Wednesday, April 8, 2026
BodyRochester, Minnesota
SessionBoards and Commissions
DateWednesday, April 8, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 15:50

Transcript — Verbatim
0:09

Perfect finding.

0:12

All right.

0:22

All right.

0:24

First animal's meeting this is our roll call and our appointment.

0:29

Starting with Martin.

0:30

Marty Cormac, Ward One.

0:32

Chad Raymaker, Ward Six.

0:35

Cindy Morgan, Ward 3.

0:36

Paul Marina Ward 2.

0:38

Rebecca then for five.

0:42

At large member.

0:43

All right.

0:44

So there are any questions or changes on the order of agenda if you said we don't.

0:50

We're going to look at okay.

0:54

All right.

0:55

Next item is approval and amendments of the meeting of March 3rd.

0:59

For any questions or certifications of party members meet on that.

1:04

Seeing none, is there a motion to approve?

1:06

So I'm on Marty's first.

1:08

Is there second?

1:11

All in favor say aye.

1:13

Aye.

1:13

I motion is approved.

1:15

Okay.

1:20

Next item is our open combat comment period.

1:25

And our rules are essentially the same as the city council using.

1:29

Limited to 20 minutes.

1:30

Each speaker may speak for up to two minutes until the 20-minute period is exhausted.

1:42

Typically, the board doesn't respond to comments made at open comment.

1:47

We usually if uh do that if there needs to be a clarification or a written response for setting up a meeting that happens after the open comments.

1:56

So with that, Kelly, have you got a list?

1:58

None?

1:59

Okay.

2:00

Well, it's unusual.

2:02

Thank you for coming, but maybe so all right.

2:06

Gary, yeah.

2:08

Can I just um in reading the notes from the last open comment?

2:12

There was just a name on there, but there's no even issue that's on there.

2:16

And I wonder if we can just include at least the issue that they were speaking to, so we have some context.

2:22

I actually am guessing it was RAPA was the person who spoke in the open comments.

2:28

But um I just thought, gosh, we should at least capture what they're saying.

2:34

I think that's a good idea, at least right on top of it.

2:37

So we'll do that forward here.

2:39

Another space on the on the form that people sign up for.

2:43

Okay.

2:44

All right.

2:44

Now we go into the park and rec department monthly reports.

2:48

Uh there's quite a few interesting ones in there.

2:50

Um, do you have any comments you need to make or any of your staff on those?

2:54

Well, try to give you a lot of the great information in this uh month, this past month, some are a team, and it's uh first the theme is uh past few months has been transitioning now again into spring.

3:09

Well whether it's not cooperating with them.

3:12

It's uh our intent to be to be ready for spring.

3:16

Uh so you have some uh information about golf, information about our wildlife management efforts, uh namely um use management and uh hope that if you get any questions or comments uh that you'll review the materials that we provided and work uh being one to me.

3:39

And then um a lot of great programming.

3:44

Uh I'm always impressed to see how uh facilities transition during this time stay uh very busy regardless of the seeking, and that seems to be the theme throughout our system.

3:58

Thank you.

3:59

Okay, well I'm assuming because I saw pins and the greens at the courses that they're open now.

4:07

Yeah, we we are open as far as the weather is permitting and we did that as a kind of a soft opening that we'll make an official announcement uh once we get through this course now, just to make sure everyone's aware it just allows us to kind of work out kinks and not overrun uh it's kind of marginal as far as when we're frost and moisture and everything else, so it gives the break to the courses as we kind of gear up in the season.

4:37

Just a question for when spring arrives, hopefully.

4:40

Um we have a number of new facilities and some excellent facilities, which sometimes are hard or not as easy to get to.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Parks and Recreation█████████████████████████████████████████████84%
Procedural█████████16%
Summary of Proceedings

Rochester Park Board Meeting - April 8, 2026

Note: The agenda and minutes list the meeting date as April 7, 2026, but the provided date is April 8, 2026. This summary uses the provided date.

The Rochester Park Board met on April 8, 2026, at 4:30 p.m. in City Hall Conference Room 104. Six members were present (Chad Ramaker, Martin J. Cormack, Gary Neumann, Rebekah Kunz, Cynthia Morgan, Paul P. Marino); Mark Bilderback was absent. The board approved routine items, discussed capital improvements at MLK Park, and authorized several contracts.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes: Unanimously adopted the minutes of the March 3, 2026 Park Board meeting as the official record. Motion by Cormack, second by Marino.
  • Monthly Reports: Received and filed the Parks and Recreation Department monthly report for March 2026. Director Paul Widman highlighted the transition to spring, golf course soft opening, geese management, and facility transitions.
  • Monthly Bills: Unanimously approved the department’s monthly bills as presented. Motion by Kunz, second by Morgan.
  • Financial Performance YTD: Received and filed the year-to-date financial performance report through March 2026. Informational only.
  • Consent Agenda Items 8A and 8B: Approved as a block: (8A) Authorization of a quote from American Fence for $82,687 for Quarry Hill asset preservation fencing; (8B) Approval of support for installation of an intergenerational outdoor fitness area at Soldiers Field Park, coordinated by FitLot, Inc. Motion by Cormack, second by Ramaker. Unanimous.

Public Comments & Testimony

No members of the public spoke during the open comment period. The board did note a procedural improvement: future minutes will include the topic of public comments, not just the speaker’s name.

Discussion Items

Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) Park Improvements – Playground (Item 8C) Commissioner Rebekah Kunz pulled this item from the consent agenda for discussion. Park Planner Jeff Feece confirmed that the renderings shown are the actual equipment being ordered. The playground will feature poured-in-place rubber surfacing (green and brown). Kunz asked about shade elements; Feece noted that mature trees on site will provide sufficient shade. Regarding seating, Feece stated that three benches will be placed around the playground perimeter, plus bike racks. Board President Gary Neumann noted that the project is part of a $1.8 million grant-funded phased improvement, and that the playground equipment is being purchased through a state cooperative purchasing program, which saves an estimated $5,000–$15,000 off list price. The current quote covers only playground equipment and installation; benches, sidewalks, and other site improvements will be part of a future action.

MLK Park Improvements – Splash Pad (Item 8D) Commissioner Kunz also pulled this item. Feece confirmed the renderings are accurate. Kunz observed that the splash pad features appear minimal compared to the Silver Lake Pool splash pad; Feece explained the budget is smaller. He noted that the splash pad is comparable to the one at Lincolnshire Park. Benches and shade trees (some were removed for construction) will be provided as part of overall site improvements, not included in this quote. The quote from Aquatix by Landscape Structures is $465,246.81.

Other Business – MLK Park Sidewalk Director Paul Widman reported that the sidewalk on the west side of MLK Park will be presented to the board for approval at the May 2026 meeting. This follows previous discussions and community concerns.

Key Outcomes

  • Unanimous approval of minutes, monthly reports, monthly bills, and financial performance report.
  • Unanimous approval of Consent Items 8A (Quarry Hill fencing, $82,687) and 8B (FitLot fitness area at Soldiers Field).
  • Unanimous approval of Item 8C: Authorization of playground quote from St. Croix Recreation for MLK Park playground equipment and installation. Motion by Cormack, second by Marino.
  • Unanimous approval of Item 8D: Authorization of splash pad quote from Aquatix by Landscape Structures for $465,246.81 at MLK Park. Motion by Ramaker, second by Morgan.
  • Future agenda: The MLK Park sidewalk project will be presented at the May 2026 meeting.
  • Board tour: The board discussed a potential tour of new facilities, including the new park operations building, Silver Lake Pool, and the volleyball center, possibly in late May.

Meeting adjourned unanimously.

Meeting Transcript

Perfect finding. All right. All right. First animal's meeting this is our roll call and our appointment. Starting with Martin. Marty Cormac, Ward One. Chad Raymaker, Ward Six. Cindy Morgan, Ward 3. Paul Marina Ward 2. Rebecca then for five. At large member. All right. So there are any questions or changes on the order of agenda if you said we don't. We're going to look at okay. All right. Next item is approval and amendments of the meeting of March 3rd. For any questions or certifications of party members meet on that. Seeing none, is there a motion to approve? So I'm on Marty's first. Is there second? All in favor say aye. Aye. I motion is approved. Okay. Next item is our open combat comment period. And our rules are essentially the same as the city council using. Limited to 20 minutes. Each speaker may speak for up to two minutes until the 20-minute period is exhausted. Typically, the board doesn't respond to comments made at open comment. We usually if uh do that if there needs to be a clarification or a written response for setting up a meeting that happens after the open comments. So with that, Kelly, have you got a list? None? Okay. Well, it's unusual. Thank you for coming, but maybe so all right. Gary, yeah. Can I just um in reading the notes from the last open comment? There was just a name on there, but there's no even issue that's on there. And I wonder if we can just include at least the issue that they were speaking to, so we have some context. I actually am guessing it was RAPA was the person who spoke in the open comments. But um I just thought, gosh, we should at least capture what they're saying. I think that's a good idea, at least right on top of it. So we'll do that forward here. Another space on the on the form that people sign up for. Okay. All right. Now we go into the park and rec department monthly reports. Uh there's quite a few interesting ones in there. Um, do you have any comments you need to make or any of your staff on those? Well, try to give you a lot of the great information in this uh month, this past month, some are a team, and it's uh first the theme is uh past few months has been transitioning now again into spring.

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