6. PRSR 01-12-2002 Item # 6.
City of
Elk -�-1
River
MEMORANDUM
TO: Park and Recreation Commission
FROM: Michele McPherso�4;'DnCirector of Planning
DATE: January 12, 2002
SUBJECT: Discuss Park Dedication
Attachments
• Park Service Areas, Park Master Plan
• City Attorney Memo of December 13, 2001
• The Commission has been asked to review its neighborhood park requirements. Of concern
is the proximity and distance between parks serving neighborhoods.
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S:\PLANNING\MICHMC\PARKNREC\ParkDedication.doc
. PROPOSED PARK SYSTEM
PARK SERVICE AREAS
Park Service Areas are proposed in the Plan as a useful method of planning for the
acquisitions of neighborhood parks in the urban area of the city. Neighborhood parks and
consequently park service areas were not identified in the rural areas of Elk River. It was
felt that typical neighborhood park amenities could be accommodated on larger rural lots.
Indeed, most individual rural lots themselves are larger that the typical neighborhood
park. The Park Service Areas are particularly valuable in implementing a neighborhood
park system where geographic distance from residents to park facilities is an important
consideration.
Neighborhood parks, ranging in size from 2 to 4 acres, are an important component of
Elk River's park system. They provide for the recreational needs of the people within
walking or biking distance of their homes. In order to serve the entire urban area of the
city sufficiently, the park service area boundaries must be defined and mapped. The
criteria for differentiating boundaries are physical barriers, geographic distance and
estimated population distribution. Physical boundaries include highways, rivers and
lakes. The geographic distance is ideally a radius of one mile or smaller to be within a
comfortable range of any given Neighborhood Park.
It is anticipated that land for future neighborhood parks will be dedicated as property is
subdivided. An attempt was made to identify the location of these future neighborhood
where land could be dedicated by more than one property owner. However, the
suitability of land for neighborhood parks will still need to be considered on a case by
case basis.
Where existing parks and recreational lands serve neighborhood park needs within a park
service area, the addition of a neighborhood park is not planned. The park service areas
will need to be adjusted, if the urban areas of the city is expanded and as new collector
roads are identified.
The following map shows the Park Service Areas in Elk River and the possible location
of future neighborhood parks.
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G R A Y 3400 CITY CENTER CONSULTING OFFICE,BEIJING CHINA
33 SOUTH SIXTH STREET
PLANT MINNEAPOLIS,MN 55402-3796
M O O T Y 612 343-2800
Fax:612 333-0066
WEB SITE:www.gpmlaw.com
MEMORANDUM
TO: Michele McPherson
FROM: Peter K. Beck, Charles D. Wilson
RE: Park Dedication Requirements for the Park Point Subdivision
DATE: December 13, 2001
This memorandum is in response to your request for our opinion regarding the
appropriateness of including the lake surface area when calculating the total area of the
• Park Point Subdivision for park dedication purposes.
The reasonableness of a municipal requirement for the dedication of land is
analyzed in light of the need created for the land required to be dedicated. The city must
show a relationship between the development and the city's need for land dedication. To
meet this burden the city must show an essential nexus between a legitimate state interest
and the condition exacted. (see Kottschade v. City of Rochester, 537 N.W.2d 301 (Minn.
Ct. App. 1995; citing Dolan v. City of Tigard, 512 U.S. 374, (1994)) Once the city has
demonstrated that a nexus exists, the city must then demonstrate a rough proportionality
between the development and the dedication requirement. Kottschade at 308.
It is clear that there is an essential nexus between residential development and the
need for park land, so park dedication requirements are lawful. The Minnesota Supreme
Court has found that a 10%park dedication requirement is reasonable (see Collis V. City
of Bloomington, 246 N.W.2d 19 (Minn. 1976), and this is the standard which Elk river
has adopted. This standard is based on the finding that a certain amount of development
will cause a corresponding need for park resources, as a percentage of the land
developed.
Including the publicly owned lake surface within the "undeveloped land to be
subdivided" for the purposes of calculating the park dedication requirement raises a
number of concerns. First, we are not sure it is consistent with the subdivision ordinance,
which speaks of the "undeveloped land". More importantly, we are not sure that
including the lake surface in this calculation, while excluding it when calculating density,
i is consistent with the constitutional "rough proportionality"test. If the presence of the
lake within the subdivision diminishes the number of units allowed in the subdivision, it
would,presumably, also diminish the need for park resources created by the subdivision.
It could also be seen as imposing a double burden on the subdivider.
For these reasons, we would recommend against including the lake surface. If
you have any questions regarding this analysis,please do not hesitate to contact either of
us.
GP:850441 v2
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