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Man, city officials keep talking about so many topics of interest to the entire community, that it’s just a cheers and jeers galore these days.
For example, a couple thoughts from this week’s Park Board meeting…
Cheers…to leaning toward a decision that would enhance the Red Lake River as an amenity in Crookston and not just a threatening nuisance
The city, as part of the redevelopment and restoration of the Sixth Street landslide site, bought a shelter with intentions to place it on the riverbank there. But it’s big, 26 feet by 26 feet, and officials have started to think that, with the project mostly about natural restoration and not a lot of park “stuff” and with so many cars driving by on Sixth Street and a lack of parking, the shelter might be a bit much for that particular area.
But the city has a smaller shelter that will fit nicely along the river on Sixth Street, and you’ll probably see it in place before summer’s end. As for the huge one, since Maplewood Park in the Chase-Loring Addition still needs to be put back into shape after serving as a staging area during flood control work, an official decision probably won’t be made in the coming months. But, board members seem to like the idea of the large shelter at Maplewood Park, adjacent to the community’s most popular spot to fish on the Red Lake River, which will also soon be home to a floating fishing pier.
It’s a good location, and will make it more of a destination.
Jeers…to city staff holding voting positions on various boards and committees
You learn something new every day, they say, and this week we learned that our city administrator, Aaron Parrish, doesn’t think it’s good practice for city staff to hold voting positions on any committees or boards. It’s the job of city staff, if they’re serving in some capacity on these committees, he said, to partake in discussions on various topics, provide input, feedback and recommendations, and then sit back and let the voting members decide. Then, it’s the job of the city staff to execute whatever the committee has decided.
The Park Board had this discussion this week because the new youth hockey board was taking shape, and after Parrish discussed it with Parks and Rec Director Scott Kleven and Parks Superintendent Scott Riopelle, the trio decided that the two should serve as ex-officio members of the new board, meaning they don’t vote. At this week’s meeting, neither Kleven nor Riopelle expressed any objection to serving in such a capacity, but as the discussion continued, it was learned that the pair vote on pretty much every other youth sports committee they sit on. That apparently is fine with the rest of the board, because no one would second Larry Brekken’s motion to approve a new youth hockey board with Kleven and Riopelle as ex-officio members. Led by Gary Warren, the board approved a hockey board that will include Kleven and Riopelle as voting members.
Parrish, in his time as city administrator, has been right more often than he’s been wrong. His opinion on this matter should have carried more weight, especially since Kleven and Riopelle seemed fine with their ex-officio status.
Man, city officials keep talking about so many topics of interest to the entire community, that it’s just a cheers and jeers galore these days.
For example, a couple thoughts from this week’s Park Board meeting…
Cheers…to leaning toward a decision that would enhance the Red Lake River as an amenity in Crookston and not just a threatening nuisance
The city, as part of the redevelopment and restoration of the Sixth Street landslide site, bought a shelter with intentions to place it on the riverbank there. But it’s big, 26 feet by 26 feet, and officials have started to think that, with the project mostly about natural restoration and not a lot of park “stuff” and with so many cars driving by on Sixth Street and a lack of parking, the shelter might be a bit much for that particular area.
But the city has a smaller shelter that will fit nicely along the river on Sixth Street, and you’ll probably see it in place before summer’s end. As for the huge one, since Maplewood Park in the Chase-Loring Addition still needs to be put back into shape after serving as a staging area during flood control work, an official decision probably won’t be made in the coming months. But, board members seem to like the idea of the large shelter at Maplewood Park, adjacent to the community’s most popular spot to fish on the Red Lake River, which will also soon be home to a floating fishing pier.
It’s a good location, and will make it more of a destination.
Jeers…to city staff holding voting positions on various boards and committees
You learn something new every day, they say, and this week we learned that our city administrator, Aaron Parrish, doesn’t think it’s good practice for city staff to hold voting positions on any committees or boards. It’s the job of city staff, if they’re serving in some capacity on these committees, he said, to partake in discussions on various topics, provide input, feedback and recommendations, and then sit back and let the voting members decide. Then, it’s the job of the city staff to execute whatever the committee has decided.
The Park Board had this discussion this week because the new youth hockey board was taking shape, and after Parrish discussed it with Parks and Rec Director Scott Kleven and Parks Superintendent Scott Riopelle, the trio decided that the two should serve as ex-officio members of the new board, meaning they don’t vote. At this week’s meeting, neither Kleven nor Riopelle expressed any objection to serving in such a capacity, but as the discussion continued, it was learned that the pair vote on pretty much every other youth sports committee they sit on. That apparently is fine with the rest of the board, because no one would second Larry Brekken’s motion to approve a new youth hockey board with Kleven and Riopelle as ex-officio members. Led by Gary Warren, the board approved a hockey board that will include Kleven and Riopelle as voting members.
Parrish, in his time as city administrator, has been right more often than he’s been wrong. His opinion on this matter should have carried more weight, especially since Kleven and Riopelle seemed fine with their ex-officio status.
