bring this meeting to order for the Tuesday, November 18th, 2025 at 6:34. I guess I would like to pledge allegiance. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Uh motion for approval of the agenda. >> So moved. >> Second. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Nay sign. Okay. Motion carries. Motion >> carries. >> Oh, you got to hit the hammer and everything. >> I know. See what you're missing out. >> Yeah, I could have done it. >> I got what you get for being late. >> Yeah. >> The consent agenda. Uh, consider approval of October 14th, 2025 meetings minutes. Look for a motion, please. >> Motion. >> Second. >> Everybody say I. >> I. >> All in favor? >> I. >> All oppose. >> Command to approve the agenda. >> I Hitler. >> All approved. >> Business items. Uh, review Christmas tree lighting event. Thank you, acting chairman. Uh so the Christmas tree lighting uh event uh is all set up. We've got Santa with uh Caroling from Mayor uh Mayor Watertown Mayor uh >> Yes. Thank you. >> will be there. They're going to be doing more of a background ambiance type rather than the upfront. So they're good to go for that. They're going to have about 20 minutes worth of carols to go through. So they don't necessarily need to start right away. >> That's awesome. and I let them know that about the schedule for that. Uh, early childhood will be doing crafts once again. Uh, the Lions Club will be serving beverages, cookies once more. So, we're all set up to go. The guys are working on getting the tree all strung up. the switch works and they just need to get the brace on the tree to hold up the giant uh ball that was constructed a couple years ago because the tree is not quite big enough to hold it on its own. >> Charlie Brown, >> fun little fact. It's braced for that on top. >> Uh they've got the pavilion uh strung up with the lights and then they're still figuring out what they want to do with the splash pad. >> Okay. >> How they want to do that. But uh this is all coming together. It's December 7th, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. We'll have Santa come in on the fire engine like we did last year. So, everything's wrapping up pretty nicely there. >> Who are you able to get? >> Uh, his name is Tim. He's out of Hidden Creek. >> Cool. >> And he does it um >> a professional Santa. >> Wow. >> Yeah. Had a pretty good resume. >> Oh, nice. Cool. Cool. That's right. All right. Uh next item of business would be review Christmas decorating contest event. >> Um so I just checked we are at a grand total of three official signups as of right now. I think it was a similar last year people waited. >> Um >> I think if we get the word out again on the socials remind people. I mean I don't think anybody I haven't seen I mean I haven't seen too many people with anything up yet. you know, and after Thanksgiving kind of feels like when that really starts to >> people get the fire under them. So, >> um >> I think we've had it on our socials weekly, but as we get closer, we'll bump that frequency up. >> I think it was still good to get it out early because on the radar. >> People are like, "Oh, yeah, I should do that this year." Yeah, that was good. >> I mean, we put up a bunch last weekend because it was 60 degrees or 70 degrees, >> but it's not on yet. >> Yeah, >> we just took advantage of it. We're not also >> Yeah. entering, not put myself out there. >> You could recuse yourself. >> Yes. >> So, yeah, I think you're right. After Thanksgiving, it'll people will be like, "Okay, now I'm going to go enter." They have till when to enter? >> December 5th. >> December 5th. Okay. >> And we could probably, if we didn't, we probably could extend the deadline to sign up. >> We want to. We certainly can. >> I mean, I don't think we have to do it now. >> Yeah. But if >> Yeah. might wait. >> Yeah. If it gets closer to the fifth and we want to extend it, we can have Melissa update the graph. I think last year we had like 20 20 entries or something like that. So, >> I think you're right. I think you're going to get more as we get past Thanksgiving here. >> There seems to be enough people that were into it that I would be surprised if we didn't have a good response this year. >> So, >> Water Town's doing one now, too. >> They are. Cool. >> Yes. They called it something very official, though. >> Something extravagant. Something something of lights. Something of >> Yeah. >> Don't remember. >> Hanukkah. The festival of lights. >> I think it's called something like festival of lights or something. >> Oh, that would be unfortunate. >> I don't think it's exactly like that, but >> tour of lights. Tour. >> Yeah, >> it's good to be a trends setter. >> Yeah, that's right. >> Yep. >> I know that sounds I'll let them know. Um, >> we were able to get this one out in the November newsletter this year. I think last year we missed it. >> Yeah. >> Yeah, >> it was good. >> That was good. >> Yeah, I get it in there. >> Um, >> had about five sheets of paper in the package. >> There wasn't It was a thick one >> with the coloring contest and this and the tree lighting and then I think >> But it makes you want to open it when it's thicker like that. You're like, "Oh, is there a chuck in here or >> Yeah. No, it's good. It's good, good, good. >> Anything else? >> No, I don't have any other updates besides that. >> We're on track for it. >> Next item is discussion of future use of old schoolhouse park concession stand. >> So, I was discussing with Mayor Dodge about this, that, and the other thing, and he brought up, oh well, you want to toss it in front of the park board. We have the uh the the concession stand that was constructed. I I don't remember which year it was, but um constructed the concession stand down there. We have a rental fee for its use, and since I've been here, and I even heard anecdotes from him before that, that hasn't been rented out at all. Just really has never been used. >> So, the good mayor wanted to put forth to the park board, what, if any, future use, do we want to turn this into since it's not getting used as a concession stand? Um, you know, >> wasn't there talk of storage, lack of it >> for teams? Was that >> Yeah. Could you turn it into >> It's kind of being used as storage right now to keep stuff in there. >> Okay. >> But it's still It's still retrofitted as a concession stand. Not that you have to do a ton of rental work and spend blow a bunch of money on it, but >> they don't use it at all for games and stuff. I've ne we've never rented it out for concessions. Well, >> what's the consensus on what are we doing with the park ballpark? I mean, yeah, we don't have a town team, but there's always baseball, you know, played down there. It seems like the Knights use it and whoever else it seems like. So, will there not do we gear up for a future rehab of the ballpark? I think yeah in the future we do look at a grandstand around the main field. >> Yeah. Whether or not we get it into another grant type of thing where we do the you know the ice arena boards and stuff like that. >> Mhm. >> I thrown there uh in the interim of that is what if anything do we want to do with that building? Why? >> I think if it's not being used, if there's interest in, you know, sports equipment storage and I would encourage more teams to use it, I think that's a better use than, you know, it's sitting there not not getting used it for concessions. I mean, we had batted back and forth the potential of you split up the interior of the building. You have maybe some uh a good share of it storage, but then maybe put in a single use bathroom stall. >> Yeah. >> Or something down >> because there's water down there. >> Yep. There's water and sewer. >> Oh. >> To that concession stand. >> That's nice. >> How many square feet is it? >> Not much. >> It looks like 10 12 by 20 or something like that. >> Bathroom right by the ball field. Huh. You're probably talking about >> 400 400 or 500. Oh, that's the half because the other side's exposed. >> Yeah, there's >> Oh, okay. >> Yeah. So, >> yeah. >> That's a seating area over there. So, they have this portion over here. >> I mean, it's worthwhile for the Lions to use it as a concession stand for when there are baseball teams playing down there. No, >> they haven't for the past three years. >> Yeah. Well, maybe it's just something we think about then because >> I'm just throwing it out there whether it's worth them using it for that >> gets promoted to them to use it more. I don't know. >> I mean, we could still probably use it for storage. It seems like it's big enough for that where you split it off in the center, build a build a wall in the middle per per se, and so you could have storage in the back and still use it as concession. >> What's What's the rental fee? >> Give me one quick second. the Ankup fee schedule like >> Do you know who rented it last and when at all? >> That's none. Not at all. Non-existent. >> I don't have nobody's rented it since I've been here for three years. >> It's kind of interesting. Why >> come? >> It's just a deposit. >> Damage deposit. >> So there's not a rental fee. Yeah, because you get it, >> which is what I was going to say. Like maybe it's cost prohibitive. >> I thought for sure we had one. I was mistaken. >> That was actually going to be my suggestion is that you just make it like a nominal like >> $10 to $20 fee or but the damage deposit is a better way to do it because then >> you know they don't wreck anything. They get >> Okay, that's so 2025 we removed it. >> Remove. Okay, it's bringing back memories now. Yeah, we talked about it at city council and nobody was using it, >> right? >> So, we made the rental fees zero. >> So, there we go. >> So, here's a 2024. >> Sure. It was still only 25. Okay. It's It was never cost prohibitive. >> So, again, >> 25 bucks for four hours. >> Who has just who's used the field? >> Uh, the Knights used the field. The town ball team used the field. Zion has used it once in a while, which >> is wild. has never no one's ever had the Crow River baseball team uh youth baseball teams >> and they don't do concessions ever or just not here. >> I mean, I guess it would take It just takes somebody wanting to run. >> Exactly. >> Like that's probably the bigger It's not that the teams wouldn't do it, but >> that's why they're not teeing up all right to match the schedule with the baseball to the Lions or whoever wants to do it type of thing. So they know if they want to do it or not, if it's worth doing or not. And you have to make sure you have your food lensure from the state of Minnesota. Okay. >> I mean, we would need our we would need lensure to have it as a stand, but then you need your food handling license. >> So like the teams couldn't run like you know >> Gatorade, >> candy and Gatorade out of there. Like that's probably what's prohibitive. It's like >> it depends what you're selling. So if you're trying to do hot dogs and burgers and prepared food, you need the food handling license. But if it's all prepackaged stuff, then you can skirt under some of that. >> Sure. >> Well, I definitely don't think we should make a decision tonight because it's I mean, I think I don't I just don't understand why these people that are using it. It sounds like some of them might do fundraising or like not fundraising, but concessions at some of their events. I wonder why they wouldn't. I kind of want to know why I guess is what I'm going getting with here is >> well is it worthwhile reaching out to these right these groups and being like did you guys know that there was a this was available for use is is there any interest in your >> boo for lack of a better term your boosters >> to do something there right >> I can reach out >> before we tear out the guts or whatever it is I bathroom would be useful especially if >> I I don't know if it it's not heated. >> I was going to say like it'd be nice. It's the proximity to the ice rink there if that was like an option or if like somebody wanted to run hot chocolate out of there or something like that. It's not I mean it's not super close. So you got to take your skates off, make it a way over there. I don't know. >> You can make a rubber mat. >> Yeah. >> Pass that way too. But >> I mean it wouldn't you probably wouldn't do it all the time, but it's like maybe on a week, you know, one weekend we heat it up and you do >> it's like a skating event or something like that and then you could >> you don't have to shut it down for the winter though. Don't you have to lock down that plumbing? >> Well, you wouldn't need if you're just doing hot chocolate, you could just bring in your water and heat it up as long as there's electricity. >> But if you had plumbing in there and you're running a bathroom, you would have to have it heated during the winter time, >> right? That's what we mean. Otherwise, you got to shut it down anyway. So, it's at expense for that, >> right? >> Which you could use it for if you're going to use it for an event. >> Blowing out. >> Yeah. You got to blow it out. >> We would likely just winterize it. >> Yeah. >> Since nobody's down there anyway in the winter. >> Yeah. >> I don't know. I say we chew on it for a little while. I don't know. Maybe something will come up. A good idea to >> Yeah. Like if Nick's willing to reach out to a few clubs and see if they're interested, then we'll get feedback and move on from there. >> Yep. If they're all like, "No, we don't have the people that want to run it or you know." >> Well, that's what the thing is, who's going to run it? I don't know. I don't want >> Yeah, it's another volunteer. >> So, >> yeah, I have no problem reaching out to the ones you use and just inquiring. And if all of them say no, we have no interest. Give thought we want to do. So, I know I talked with staff and they said, uh, it'd be great for storage for the teams. So, nobody has to run up in between wait for one of the dad's pickups to arrive with all the gear. They can just put it in there. Yeah. >> And use it. >> But, I'm sure you could still get a sink and a one just a bathroom, right? >> Toilet and turn it into a real >> Y >> economy bathroom. Yeah. Well, does it have to be >> ADA? I'm sure. Right. >> Yeah. >> At the five foot circle. >> Well, like I said, we don't have a ball team anymore. So, I mean, to me, it just depends on who would use the park as to >> we might not have >> would take advantage of that. >> We might not have it now, but we got to think of if if we do down the road, >> right? So, then turning it into something else and if we go back to that, they might want it then. >> Yeah. >> I don't know. I don't know. I mean, if we make it so it's not easy remove and, you know, don't make it too fancy. >> Yeah. I mean, I think if we're putting a if we're talking about putting a grandstand in and all that, like the the retrofit of the putting the sink back in and whatever is probably peanuts compared to the project overall project cost at that point, >> but >> give us some thought. We don't need to solve the world's problem tonight, but >> no, that's good discussion. I think >> probably not the top of the list of things that need to be done either considering you barely use it for storage. >> It'd be good to make use of it though or make someone make better use of it. So, >> but revisit it back in March. So, >> yeah, >> then by then we should have maybe some answers and then we can gear up for >> agreed >> teams in the spring. >> Yep. >> Okay. >> Anything else on that? Nothing on that. >> Commissioner reports. >> Nothing for me. >> No. >> Anybody? >> No. >> All right. I I look for a motion to adjurnn then. >> Motion. >> Seconded. >> All in favor? >> I >> I. >> Any opposed? Nay. Say nay. >> All approved. >> There you go. >> We are. >> Now it sounds like you know what you're doing. I still need to work.