10-12-22 EC Minutes1
Chanhassen Environmental Commission (EC)
Chanhassen City Hall, Fountain Conference Room
6:00 pm
October 12, 2022
Members Present: Kristin Fulkerson, Leslie Elhadi, Scot Lacek, Julia Adams, Markus Fischer, and
Scott Grefe
Members Absent: Greg Hawks, Kaisa Buckholz
Staff Present: Jill Sinclair, Environmental Resources Specialist ; Jamie Marsh, GreenCorps member
Visitors: none
Minutes: September minutes were approved.
Introduction of GreenCorps member: Jamie introduced herself and shared a bit about her
background. She was a GreenCorps member with Carver County last year and worked on recycling and
composting issues. This year with the City of Chanhassen she will be assisting with forestry and
stormwater projects. The commission asked about the GreenCorps program and welcomed her to the
city.
Fall Education Event: The commission did a review of the Trivia Night event. Kristin said the
owner’s family stopped by the brewery during the event and loved seeing the crowd. The owner said he
would be open to hosting another event in the winter, probably in Jan., Feb., or March. The commission
all agreed that Dave Ryan did a fantastic job as emcee and really helped relax and entertain people.
Scott said he surveyed teams after the event and many of them asked for another event. Everyone said
they had a good time. Julia reported that her family really enjoyed the event. Response to the social
media event post was positive. The commission agreed that the event exceeded expectations. Things to
work on for the next event include better organization in announcing and presenting the winners (need to
write out winners clearly starting with 3rd place, have winning groups pick up their prizes and get picture
before next group is announced) and having the list of sources and references handy in case an answer is
challenged.
Fall Buckthorn Removal Event: The event took place on Saturday, Oct 8 and the volunteer turnout
was great, 50 people or more. It was a chilly morning but volunteer s warmed up quickly once everyone
got to work. The group cleared out a lot of buckthorn. The cut plants were hauled out into the open
park area and the Park Dept. chipped the brush on Monday. They filled a dump truck and a half. Jill
said there were a lot of comments from people that they had a good time and wondered if another event
had been planned.
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Holiday Recycling Article: Leslie wrote the article last year, but it was never published. The
commission decided that it should be updated and used t his year. Jill will send the article to Leslie for
review.
Environmental Academy discussion: Jill contacted the city of Plymouth and asked about their
program. This is the second year that they’ve offered the Academy. In 2021, 38 residents signed up; in
2022, 22 residents signed up. The Academy offered 4 courses over 4 months. The 2022 topics include
Water Sourcing and Water Plant Tour, Property Maintenance Practices, Water Resources, and Waste
and Recycling. Ideas for course topics if the commission chooses to host one include Water Treatment
tour, SMSC compost facility tour, Carver County En vironmental Center tour, and landscaping for
pollinator habitat. It would help with the commission’s goal of public education and outreach. The
commission is interested in pursuing the idea and will discuss it more at the November meeting.
Commission Updates: Scott said the Park Task Force heard that the Parks Dept. is moving ahead on a
plan development for the Lake Ann Park Preserve.
City Updates:
Avienda Townhomes going for final plat
Trees need to be watered into the fall. The County is classified in Extreme Drought and it’s
really hard on trees.
General Discussion: None
Meeting adjourned at 7:25p
Minutes prepared by Jill Sinclair