Title
Authorizing the Department of Parks and Recreation to negotiate a lease in excess of five years for the Hamline Park Recreation Building at 1564 Lafond Avenue, without regard to the provisions of Saint Paul Administrative Code §86.03(b)(3) or City Charter §13.1.01.
Body
WHEREAS, the Hamline Park Recreation Building, located at 1564 Lafond Avenue, is owned by Parks and Recreation, but has not been used for park or recreational purposes since the mid-1980's; and
WHEREAS, the building was the subject of renovation efforts by a dedicated group of individuals, businesses and community organizations, and was re-opened for use in December of 1993 by two non-profit groups, the Hamline-Midway Neighborhood Coalition and the Asian-American Renaissance, but no recreational programs were operated out of the building; and
WHEREAS, the building became vacant in July of 2011and Parks and Recreation has no plans to program the space or use it for recreational purposes; and
WHEREAS, in an effort to avoid having the building demolished, Parks and Recreation issued a Request for Proposals to interested parties for rental use of the building and has received a proposal to lease the space from Mosaic on a Stick, a for-profit business which provides classes to the public; and
WHEREAS, in exchange for investment in the building, Mosaic on a Stick would like a long-term lease, in excess of five years, and Saint Paul Administrative Code §86.03(b)(3) states that "Any lease of park lands and/or recreation facilities for a period of more than five (5) years where the property will no longer be exclusively for the use of the public shall, without limiting the provisions of chapter 13 of the City Charter, be considered a diversion or disposal subject to the provisions of section 13.01.1 of the City Charter."; and
WHEREAS, the discontinuation of use of the property for park purposes pre-dates the charter provision restricting diversion or disposal of park property, and there...
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