Where to put new tennis courts in BE?
Council continues talks on how many, other court types too

At the Blue Earth City Council meeting on Monday, Nov. 15, the Blue Earth Fire Department presented a donation of rescue equipment purchased via funds from the Firemen's Relief Association to the city.
At a regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, Nov. 15, the Blue Earth City Council weighed community feedback and its affect on various construction projects around town.
A project which has been adapted amidst a veritable volley of opinions is the reconstruction of Blue Earth’s tennis facility, currently located at Putnam Park.
The latest feasibility studies conducted by city engineer Wes Brown, of Bolton & Menk, have considered possibilities offered by a Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) owned lot on the corner of 14th and Moore Streets.
A favored layout option presented to the council at their meeting on Monday, Nov. 1, featured six tennis courts located where Putnam Park’s existing facility sits. Additionally, two tennis courts, three pickleball courts, and a basketball court would be located on the lot across the street.
The council agreed that the idea to utilize both Putnam Park and the adjacent lot must be discussed with both the Blue Earth Area School District and the HRA before any decisions were made.
Conflicting feedback from both entities was presented to the council at their Nov. 15 meeting.
“The HRA did discuss the city’s inquiry on that property on Moore Street,” city administrator Mary Kennedy shared. “They are not interested in utilizing that for this project.”
Kennedy clarified the HRA’s reasoning in a report to the council, stating, “The HRA acquired the property in 2017 for nearly $50,000 and since that time has been aggressively acquiring the properties to the east of the parcel to mitigate blight by pursuing demolition or rehabilitation of homes for the purpose of future development.”
The report added, “This parcel is potential future tax-generating land if used for housing.”
Council member Glenn Gaylord considered the HRA’s reasoning. “If they had half of that block, that would be a pretty good development,” he said, “even if we would trade that property that we need for it.”
Meanwhile, the Blue Earth Area School District agreed to maintain their role in the agreement, while admitting they would prefer for the courts to remain on school grounds as outlined in previous plans for the project.
Kennedy’s report communicated a statement from Superintendent Mandy Fletcher: “The school prefers the courts on campus, but will still participate in the financial partnership regardless of location.”
If the courts must be constructed at Putnam Park, however, Fletcher and fellow Tennis Court Subcommittee members prioritized maintaining the tennis courts’ current footprint at the park.
“The committee made a recommendation to the City Council to have Bolton and Menk pursue further exploratory work at Putnam Park…to better understand whether eight tennis courts would fit at the current six-court footprint,” Kennedy’s report explained.
“I’m worried if we do have eight courts in that space, we won’t have room for the basketball court and pickleball courts,” Gaylord noted.
Council member John Huisman countered, “Priority-wise, I think it’s the tennis courts we fit in there.”
Gaylord considered adding a basketball court to Putnam Park a top priority as well, however.
Brown suggested there may be space for a basketball court where Putnam Park’s old playground equipment currently stands.
The council responded favorably to Brown’s suggestion.
“People want a basketball court in Putnam Park,” Gaylord maintained. “Dig a little deeper, and see if there is an area for a basketball court back there further.”
The council also considered recent feedback from a different source: Blue Earth residents.
Brown and the council wished to address community concerns expressed at the street improvement public hearing on Nov. 1.
Several residents had objected to plans for sidewalk construction, questioning the need to remove sidewalk in certain areas of town, as well as the method used to determine where sidewalk will be laid.
“We don’t have a policy on this necessarily,” Kennedy explained. “If there was a policy in place it would make it easier.”
While the council did not arrive at a conclusion regarding a future policy for planning sidewalk construction, Brown did share he is considering how to accommodate current community feedback.
“I will come to the next meeting with more information on sidewalk options,” Brown said.
The City Council also addressed the following agenda items:
• The Blue Earth Fire Department’s donation of rescue equipment purchased via funds from the Firemen’s Relief Association. The equipment includes an ASR 155 rescue boat, two Ice Commander rescue suits, as well as safety items such as flashlights, battery wrenches, window punches, and seatbelt cutters. The council voted unanimously to accept the donation.
• Implications of the pending OSHA Vaccine Mandate, which is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 4, 2022 for employers with 100 or more employees.
“The plan requires employers to implement regular testing or vaccination requirements for employees,” Kennedy explained. “We (city employees) do fall into that 100 employees category.”
Kennedy shared Minnesota OSHA will have to adopt a plan that is at least as restrictive as federal requirements, so the city should start considering what kind of policy will need to be put into place for collecting employees’ vaccination statuses and complying with COVID-19 testing requirements for unvaccinated employees.
• A report summarizing the Blue Earth Campground’s 2021 season.
Campground host Denise Karau shared the campground has a very high rating and reputation, and provided examples of many positive online reviews for the council’s review.
“Denise (Karau) goes above and beyond with everything she does,” Kennedy noted. “The year end was really excellent.”
• Approving an agreement with Flaherty & Hood, P.A. for job classification and compensation services, with a total cost not to exceed $15,050.
• Setting a Truth in Taxation Hearing for Dec. 6, 2021, at 6 p.m.