The Crookston Park Board met Monday afternoon at Ray Ecklund Complex, formerly known as the Highland Complex, to officially dedicate the park and discuss the 2021 budget. A crowd of about 40-plus people was in attendance for the dedication.
RAY ECKLUND COMPLEX-
The complex includes softball fields, Jim Karn baseball field, youth baseball fields, horseshoe pits, a skate park, splash park, and tennis courts. There will be three signs with one at the main entrance to the parking lot, a sign at the intersection of Barrette Street and Central Avenue by the tennis courts, and a sign on the north end of the complex across the street from Highland School.
Ecklund was Crookston City Administrator and was in charge of starting the Park and Rec Department and was in charge of getting the complex built. “It has been here 40-plus years, and I was thinking about how many youngsters have gone through this park, it has to be thousands and thousands. I remember when we had a 36 team tournament where I climbed up on the roof of the building, and you couldn’t see the grass with all the people,” said Ecklund, who explained it was a process to get the complex built. “It took over a year. We hired a firm that designed the park, and when we got the design, we didn’t like it, so we sat down and changed it to what it is now.”
There have been a few changes to the complex, including the addition of a skate park and tennis courts. “Kurt Hendrickson was the city clerk and had put some money away for a matching grant so we could get some money for the tennis courts,” said Ecklund. “When the grant came up, we were able to get the grant, so Kurt was a big help in getting the tennis courts.”
Ecklund was touched to have the complex named after him. “Unbelievable. It brings a tear to my eye. It is hard to explain how I feel, but to see your name on a sign that will be there for a long time is unbelievable,” said Ecklund, who also thanked the community. “I would like to thank the people of Crookston for supporting the city and making this a great place to live and the people that have used the facility, and I am appreciative of that.”
2021 PARK BOARD BUDGET-
Crookston Park and Rec Director Scott Riopelle led the board through capital improvement items in the proposed 2021 budget. Riopelle told the board they had $85,000 in improvements/purchases planned for next year.
$25,000 for pool improvements
$20,000 for a UTV for spraying weeds
$20,000 for bleachers at Jim Karn Field (matching the bleachers they already purchased to complete the project)
$10,000 for Crookston Sports Center improvements (rubber matting)
$5,000 for matching grants
$4,000 towards the Zamboni batteries
$1,000 for picnic tables and repairs
Another item in the budget is $1.75 million for the RV park in Central Park. The money comes from a grant, and the City of Crookston will have to cover the cost of bathhouses and possibly making them into a storm shelter, which will cost over $300,000 as part of the project and the 1.75 million coming from a grant. “That is showing we will have an expenditure, but that is all grant money from Greater Minnesota Parks and Trails,” said Riopelle. “We have to put in $350,000 into a bathhouse, so that is a pretty good deal for us.” Mayor Dale Stainbrook said they should also look at a new boat launch if they build the RV park.
POOL REOPENING APPROVED-
The board unanimously approved the reopening of the pool on Tuesday, and Pool Manager Cody Brekken said over 30 hours was spent on cleaning the tile, and it was the cleanest floor he has seen in the five years he has been at the pool. There will be no birthday parties or private rentals allowed until further notice. Brekken added that his staff and several others will have a certification test on August 12.
COVID SHUTDOWN ALLOWS FOR EXTRA WORK AT THE POOL AND ARENA
With the Crookston Sports Center and Crookston Community Pool shut down because of the pandemic, it allowed the city staff to paint and clean the arena and pool. “During the downtime we had, we made a lot of improvements, including 85 gallons of paint, and we have resealed the main floors and all new LED lighting now,” said Riopelle. “At the pool, they have done a heckuva job with the floors and painting, new showers, so we have taken the time to upgrade those two facilities.”
SKILLS AND DRILLS
There were 45 kids registered for the Park and Rec skills and drills, which is being run by University of North Dakota Softball assistant coach Don Stopa. Kids have been showing up four days a week for two hours a day. “We split them into two fields with girls on one field and boys on another field led by Don Stopa,” said Riopelle. “We are planning on having fall sports (football and volleyball), but that will be determined as we get closer….we will see.”
DOWNED TREES
Park and Rec Supervisor Scott Butt said they found two downed trees on city property, and if anybody sees damaged trees in the parks to alert city hall and they will take care of it.
REQUEST FOR SEPTEMBER ICE/UMC CONTRACT
The Crookston Blue Line Club has requested ice in September after it was announced the city was going to wait until October to put ice in the arena. The arena usually gets ice in September, but to save money and due to lack of staff, the city decided to plan for ice one month later this fall. Riopelle said it takes three employees to run the arena, and they were hoping to use the staff to mow and complete other projects. Riopelle said he will forward the information, pros and cons to the board and council, and they will make a decision on when to put ice in the Crookston Sports Center at a later date.
Riopelle met with UMC Monday, and they toured the arena and locker rooms. UMC is looking at improving a locker room by adding more lockers and other minor improvements. Riopelle said UMC would pay for the upgrades, and they are still waiting for the signed contract, which he was told will be coming soon. As of Friday, UMC had 15 players signed up to play club hockey and 12 games on the schedule (4 vs University of Jamestown, 4 vs Williston State College, 2 vs MSU-Moorhead, and 2 vs University of Mary).
SPLASH PARK STILL CLOSED-
Crookston City Councilman Jake Fee said he had questions about the opening of the splash park and Riopelle said they are required to have an operating water fountain and the state has said public water fountains shouldn’t be used. Riopelle added, they would also have to hire a worker to sanitize everything a kid touched at the park, like benches and items in the splash park and that wouldn’t be feasible.
The next Crookston Park Board meeting will be August 17.
