Agenda - 04-12-2011 - 5 - Laserfiche WebLink

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2 Excerpts of some of these historical documents and plans are provided herein, others are available in full upon request. While the 1988 Master Plan was expanded upon, enhanced and in some cases updated by these efforts, the 1988 Plan remains the governing document for the County's physical plan for parks and recreation (with the exception of new goals and objectives adopted in the 2030 Comprehensive Plan). At the October 12, 2010 work session, the Board indicated an interest in updating or creating a new Master Plan -noting the many changes that have occurred since 1988, the need to revisit the operating principles of that plan in light of the passage of time, and the fact that the 1988 Plan is now considered outdated by State grant agencies for future matching purposes. It is also noteworthy that one of the objectives in the adopted 2030 Comprehensive Plan is in fact the creation of a new Master Plan. Over the past several months, staff has worked to evaluate the 1988 Plan, look at model new plan templates, examine parks and open space plans from other counties in North Carolina and surrounding states, and develop an outline of an approach for creating a new Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Master Plan, consistent with the 2030 Comprehensive Plan and other plans and documents, with a goal of completing the effort by June 30, 2012. A paper outlining this approach is provided as Attachment 1, including a draft outline of the proposed Plan. Staff will also present examples of other recent or notable county parks and open space plans and a possible timetable of action. For consistency with the overall County Comprehensive Plan, the proposed target year for the new master plan is also 2030. Finally, staff poses some "Key Questions" for the Board to ponder, matters that would need to be addressed in a new Plan. While three options for pursuing a new plan are noted, staff's recommended approach is to pursue ahybrid/augmented staff resource method to the creation of the plan, with substantial involvement of existing staff in DEAPR and solicited assistance from other departments in certain areas of special expertise. Data collection, research, graphics, and initial drafting would be conducted by a temporary staff person to be hired for the duration of the project. FINANCIAL IMPACT: If moving forward with an updated plan during FY 2011-12 is desired, staffs preferred option (DEAPR staff coordination with temporary staff assistance) would involve hiring a temporary employee as noted above. The cost for this person, plus other associated public information and logistical costs, is projected at $22,000. Hiring of an outside consultant to create the plan could cost between $90-150,000 based on recent plans completed or underway in other jurisdictions. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board consider the proposed format and process for a new Master Plan, and provide feedback to management and staff on the desirability of moving forward, a timeframe and cost. In particular, Board thoughts and feedback on the two "Key Questions" on page 5 of this agenda abstract item would help provide framework for moving forward.