EC 2010 11 10
Chanhassen Environmental Commission (EC)
Regular Meeting
November 10, 2010
Members Present:
Dennis Hansen, Beverly Foster, Rose Kircher, Amy Wenner, David
Christianson, Robert Kircher
Members Absent
: J.R. Relick
Staff Present:
Krista Spreiter, Natural Resources Technician
Minutes:
October minutes were approved.
Environmental Excellence Award:
Each applicant was reviewed and discussed. The group discussed the LEED (Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design) certification process, criteria, etc., and what the Kwik Trip
had accomplished to gain the ‘silver’ level LEED certification. More information was requested
on accomplishments made by Barbara Botten. Robert made a motion to recommend Kwik Trip
for the ‘Commercial’ award category, Barbara Botten for the ‘Individual’ category, and the Boy
Scout troop that participated in Arbor Day for the ‘Group’ category. The troop number was
unknown, needs to be confirmed by Jill. An alternate or additional award was also discussed for
the Boy Scout troop that may be more suitable for children, or in the form of a badge.
Holiday Article:
The group discussed various topics for the Holiday Villager Newspaper article. The topic
decided on was ‘Tips for Holiday Recycling and Waste Reduction’. Beverly volunteered to write
the article. Amy volunteered to provide additional tips she had already compiled. The timing of
the article was discussed, and whether it should be published before or after Thanksgiving.
Discussed whether the tips should be separated under the subtopics ‘Winter’ and ‘Holiday’.
Question was raised whether additional cultural celebrations should be included or addressed.
2011 Work Plan:
Work Plan draft was reviewed and additions were discussed on various topics, including:
Beverly suggested adding facebook postings, along with web page design
Dave suggested getting City Council involved in the Parks/Open Space tour
Amy suggested partnering with businesses in the 2011 Arbor Day celebration/work day
Suggestion made to incorporate commercial/businesses to plant trees as a part of Arbor
Day
Denny suggested incorporating any solar energy uses in Chanhassen in
education/promotion
Suggestion made that energy rebate list be compiled and advertised for 2011
Question was raised if City Raingarden Rebates would be available next year, and if they
would be advertised
Arbor Day 2011:
The group agreed that Arbor Day 2010 went well, and much was accomplished. Many liked that
volunteerism was the main focus of the day. However, all agreed that additional activities could
be added to the day. Some of these included:
Have the tree sale; bare-root or otherwise, on the same day and location, as done in the
past
Rotating entertainment
Information/educational handouts
Hotdogs
Revolving stations, with the Environmental Club running an activity
Residents/Volunteers given a bare-root tree to plant in parks
General Discussion:
The draft for the webpage was reviewed and discussed. Suggestions for additions and changes
were made such as:
photos on each section
logo
Links to be listed along the side of the page, instead of along the bottom
Link to facebook page
More bullet points versus text
Denny requested that the commission send comments to Amy for the webpage, as well as to
Beverly for the Holiday article.
Amy and Beverly stated that they will be at the December 13 City Council Meeting for the
Environmental Excellence and Recognition Award presentation. Denny and Robert will also try
to attend.
The next meeting will be Wednesday, December 8 at 6:00pm.
Meeting adjourned at approximately 8:20 PM.
Minutes prepared by Krista Spreiter