The City of Crookston Parks & Recreation Board met on Wednesday night in the City Hall Council chambers. The agenda included the hiring committee’s recommendation for the department’s director position, as well as a discussion on reducing the splash park hours due to the City of Crookston’s new water restrictions.
PARK AND REC DIRECTOR–
The board approved the hiring committee’s recommendation for Jake Solberg to be the new Park and Rec Director, replacing the retired Scott Riopelle. 
City Administrator Amy Finch was a part of the hiring committee and talked a little more about the process and selection of Solberg. “We picked a pool of interviewers off of any complete applications that we received,” said Finch. “We were looking at job history, experience, and from there, we were able to select six people to interview. Jake stood out with a good, well-rounded experience and had a very calm and consistent manner about him during the interview. I think he will be a perfect fit for our organization and staff.”
Solberg has an impressive background making him a great choice for the position. Solberg is initially from Silver Bay, Minnesota. He started working in Parks & Recreation when he was 15. His first job was a Rec Coordinator position in Williston, North Dakota, where he spent two years before being promoted to a Rec Superintendent position. Solberg and his wife Shayla (Henneberg), who is from Crookston, decided to move back to Minnesota and lived in Austin where Jake took another job as a Rec Superintendent. After a while, Shayla took a job in Crookston at the Altru Clinic, while Jake currently works in East Grand Forks, a part of the city’s Park & Recreation Department.
The decision to hire Solberg is pending Crookston City Council approval at the meeting on Monday, August 9.
SPLASH PARK HOUR REDUCTION
The board also discussed reducing the splash park hours due to city water restrictions that came into effect last week. The splash pad was originally open from sunrise to sunset but was reduced to 1:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. due to the cities new water restrictions. Tonight, the board approved moving the hours back to run from 2:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. after receiving feedback from families.
Finch spoke on the decision to reduce the hours and the adjustments that were made. “The reason for the reduction in the hours was based on what other communities were doing,” said Finch. “Because of the drought conditions, it wouldn’t be fair if we were requiring water reduction but then not doing any ourselves. It’s a high-water usage at the park, which is great because it means it’s being used, but also a bad thing because of the conditions we’re facing.”
The splash pad will be officially closed for the year on Labor Day weekend.
CITY CAMPGROUND PULL-THROUGHS
The board also heard from Finch about a request to add more pull-throughs at the city’s campground site. The site currently has three but would like to add more to provide a more convenient site for users. The downside to this decision would be the need to clear spaces and leave fewer spots for the campground.
After a lengthy discussion, the board voted to add more pull-throughs, and Finch talked about why the pull-throughs will be of great value. “Many people like a pull-through option with a bigger RV or truck and trailer that they may have,” said Finch. “The benefit with this option will allow the campground to be more user friendly and give people the option to have a pull-through spot rather than needing to back into a spot.”
The project will start advertising for bids if the motion from the board is passed at the next City Council meeting this coming Monday night, August 9. Advertising usually takes three weeks, and a few other details will also need to be fleshed out, so the city wants to move on this as soon as possible, or else the project won’t take place until the spring.
The next Parks & Recreation board meeting will take place Monday, August 16, in City Hall.
