by Dennis Dalman
editor@thenewsleaders.com
The City of Sartell and the Sartell-St. Stephen School District both decided they would each pitch in $100,000 as a condition for a possible $100,000 grant from the Department of Natural Resources’ Outdoor Recreation grant program.
The $300,000 would be used for ongoing improvements to Champion Field so that complex could be used by both the city and school district into the future.
The city council at its March 27 meeting voted 4-4 to commit to spending $100,000 for that purpose. Council member David Peterson was not present at that meeting.
Sartell Financial Advisor/Administrator told the council the money could be derived from the half-cent sales-tax fund ($40,000), the Park District Fund ($40,000) and the Water Fund ($10,000).
The projects at the parks will also involve the city spending up to $15,000 to do soil borings at both Champion Field and Pinecone Central Park. The request was made by Dan Folsom of Design Tree Engineering and Land Surveying, St. Cloud. Folsom has said he will volunteer his time for the field improvements at Champion Field.
Jason Mathiasen, a Sartell businessman, appeared before the council at its March 27 meeting to answer questions. Mathiasen is a member of the Pinecone Central Park Association.
Mathiasen said the need for soil borings was a “late-coming realization” he had only heard about March 23 when he talked with Folsom, who told him the soil conditions in those areas range from good to bad, and before making major improvements to those parks, the nature of the soil conditions must be known.
The soil borings, Mathiasen said, would be done in partnership with the school district. Sartell Financial Director/Administrator Mary Degiovanni said the money could come from the city’s Public Improvement Fund.
Three on the council (Mike Chisum, Ryan Fitzthum and Pat Lynch) questioned why the soil conditions at those parks were not determined before all of the developments on those areas.
Mathiasen said his is not sure, that he wasn’t on the Pinecone Central Park Association at that time.
Sartell City Engineer Jon Halter said soil investigation is always a good thing to do before projects begin, including parking lots. The council agreed to delay approval of the soil-borings request until it can hear from engineers about the details and the need for them.
Champion Field in Sartell has undergone many improvements since its beginning nearly 50 years ago. A Department of Natural Resources grant, if awarded, will make possible more amenities, along with $100,000 from Sartell and $100,000 from the school district.
