Park Board shrinks; City Council will stay at six members

Park Board won't replace departing member, will now have five members
The New Hampton Park Board is going to get a tad smaller while the city’s council will continue to have six members, at least for the foreseeable future.
The decisions were made at last Monday night’s City Council meeting, which was held via Zoom because of concerns about COVID-19.
Council members voted unanimously to reduce the membership of the Park Board from six to five after longtime board member Steve Murray resigned because he is moving out of New Hampton.
Murray, who also resigned from the city’s Tree Board, said in his resignation letter that he appreciated working with various board members and the Parks and Recreation staff during his years on the board.
“… knowing that the New Hampton parks are much better now than they were I first started is very gratifying,” Murray wrote. “I know [Rick Kramer], Tara [Hackman] and Lori [Marzoff] will continue to impress the community with your visions.”
It was Kramer, the Parks and Recreation director, who suggested that this might be a good time to go to a five-member board. He pointed out that it would eliminate 3-3 votes, like those that occurred last summer over opening the pool.
— For more on this story, see the Nov. 24 Tribune