PORT TOWNSEND — The city’s parks and recreation department is looking for public input as it updates its long-range planning document.
Residents are invited to attend an informational meeting from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 12 at the Cotton Building, 607 Water St., Port Townsend.
Presentations will be offered each hour.
The city has hired BERK Consulting Inc. of Seattle to help update its Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces plan, an effort that will include identifying future needs for the next decade.
Interim City Manager Nora Mitchell has said the city intends to review the plan early next year as it considers whether to ask voters to establish a metropolitan parks district with a new property tax that would help to pay for identified projects.
Both the pool at the Mountain View Commons and the Port Townsend Golf Club would be part of the plan, Mayor Deborah Stinson said.
Additional items to be studied include parks facilities for active and passive recreation, trail projects that connect to existing amenities and to meet the needs of new growth, and interconnected open spaces that provide natural environments for fish, wildlife and people, according to the city website.
Alex Wisniewski, the city parks director, said at a City Council meeting last month that the kickoff meeting covered the timeline and scope of the project and transitioned into including public outreach.
“We ended up driving BERK around to every single one of our park properties in our inventory,” Wisniewski said.
“We walked around, talked about challenges, what is working well, and how our parks are used. It was meant to be an introduction to our parks system for the BERK consulting team so they aren’t just getting information in email and pictures.”
The planning process will include a review of the 2014 plan and designing a community needs assessment survey to identify program service gaps.
The city also wants to classify its existing facilities by type and location, including parks, trails and open space.
An updated plan also will allow the city to remain eligible for grants through the state Recreation and Conservation Office.
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Jefferson County Managing Editor Brian McLean can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 6, or at bmclean@peninsuladailynews.com.
