Agenda - 06-03-2014 - 5a - Laserfiche WebLink

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10 Orange County Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Master Plan CHAPTER 1- Summary of the Plan Master Plan Summary and Findings The new Master Plan to guide parks and recreation decisions through the year 2030 is a synthesis of the many reports, studies, surveys and needs assessments conducted to date and /or contained within. In review and comparison with the 1988 Master Plan, many of the same values and principles enumerated at that time remain valid in 2014. However, many conditions have changed since 1988. • The county population has grown by 56% since 1988, and is expected to grow again by 25% by the end of this master plan period. • The county, fueled by public support, has passed two parks and open space bonds to acquire and construct new parks and public open space, with six County parks now open, nature preserves protected, and several municipal parks funded. • Most of the parks called for in the 1988 plan are now either built, or land has acquired for future construction. • Recreation programs are more numerous and diverse, branching into areas barely envisioned in 1988. • The County owns a successful indoor sports facility in the Sportsplex, and has engaged in partnerships with other recreation providers for camps, athletic leagues and other facilities. • School Parks — Opportunities to utilize school play- ing fields and facilities for public recreation at existing and future facilities. • Community Parks — Parks generally between 40 -75 acres that serve smaller sub -areas of the county and offer a mix of active and low- impact recreation needs. • District Parks —The primary park for each of the County's four larger designated districts as identified in 1988 (Northeast, Cheeks/ Hillsborough, Bingham and Chapel Hill Township), these are usually 75 -125 acres in size and also include active and low- impact recreation facilities, but also may include amphitheaters and water features, among other facilities. • Regional Parks — Large areas of 150 acres or more that serve all or most of the County, these typically feature miles of trails of different types and have picnic areas, water features and other natural exhibits or facilities. • Nature Preserve Access Areas —These are portions of County Nature Preserves that are or would be accessible to the public for camping, hiking, wild- life viewing and other low- impact activities. These areas are defined sites within a larger natural area located in less- sensitive portions of large areas of natural land, where the primary purpose is to protect significant natural or cultural resources present in the area. One of the important distinctions between a county By any measure, Orange County is in a very different place in 2014 in terms of its parks, public open space and recreational offerings. However, despite the accomplishments, many things remain to be completed — including future facilities secured but not yet constructed or opened. At a macro level, Orange County's parks and recreation needs in 2014 as enumerated in this document are more aligned to finishing planned improvements than embarking on massive new facilities planning. This is reflected in the assessment of park classifica- tions, standards and service delivery in Chapter 9. Table 9 -2 illustrates the nature of the park classifica- tion system that has evolved and will be needed going forward: 1-7 park system and a city park system is that smaller park types — such as mini -parks or neighborhood parks — best serve and are most easily - provided by municipalities where the population density, transportation networks and public transit, water and sewer infrastructure and walking /driving time makes these smaller facilities more practical. In a large county of 400 square miles, with most of the areas of a rural nature, this plan concludes that the most effective service provision scale is to focus on district and regional parks and nature preserves. In addition, where special communities and needs exist, community parks have been provided and may be appropriate. This is, in fact, the way the County park system has evolved over the past 16 years, working in conjunction with its sister systems in the towns and with State Parks.