Seattle Parks and Recreation
Parks Legacy Plan

Public Meetings

Seattle Parks and Recreation invites you and your family to help plan Seattle Parks and Recreation’s future. Together, we are starting an important public conversation to ensure we have a great park system for generations to come.

Tuesday, May 7 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
GENERAL MEETING
Seattle Parks and Recreation Administration Building
100 Dexter Ave. N

Wednesday, May 8 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
SPORTS, RECREATION, AND AQUATICS
Green Lake Community Center
7201 E Green Lake Dr. N

Monday, May 13 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
SENIORS, TEENS INCLUDING LGBT, COMMUNITY
CENTERS AND ASSOCIATED RECREATION COUNCIL (ARC)
Northgate Community Center
10510 5th Ave. NE

Thursday, May 16 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS, OPEN SPACE
AND MAINTENANCE
Jefferson Community Center
3801 Beacon Ave. S

Tuesday, May 21 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
GENERAL MEETING
Dakota Place Park Building
4304 SW Dakota St.

Wednesday, May 22 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE COMMUNITIES
South Shore K-8 School
4800 S Henderson St.

What is the Parks Legacy Plan?

Seattle Parks and Recreation is embarking on a planning process to develop a strategic direction for the future. Questions to be addressed include: 

• Are our resources deployed in the most effective manner?
• What is the public view of our park system?
• What are the basic services Parks provides?

The first phase of the plan is the development of shared Vision, Mission and Values statements.

The second phase of the plan is a programmatic review, telling the story of Parks and Recreation:

• What we do
• Who we serve
• How we are funded

An analysis on national, regional and local recreation trends has been completed, along with a citywide survey which gathered information on how our park system is used, frequency of use and park users’ concerns.

Phase three will be a look to the future that provides a framework for a sustainable parks and recreation system.

Background

In 2009, Parks and Recreation concluded a strategic planning process with the publication of the Strategic Action Plan, a five-year ‘to do’ list which provided direction for stewardship of the park system. Many of the Strategic Action Plan tasks have been accomplished, while others have been delayed due to the economic recession. Five working teams continue to work on implementation. The Parks Legacy Plan will be an update of the 2009 Plan, with a focus on data collection and analysis. The 2009 plan is available here.

Next Steps 2013 – 2014

Where do we go from here? A series of public meetings and meetings with park maintenance, planning and recreation staff will provide a forum for discussing the questions posed in this report. That discussion will provide the basis for the next phase, which will include recommendations for steps that need to be taken to preserve the Parks Legacy. Those recommendations will include more efficiencies, identify additional partnerships, suggest funding priorities, and other steps forward.

• April 8, Draft Parks Legacy Plan released for public comment and posted on Parks website
• April 8 - May 22, Parks Staff input and discussion
• May 7- May 22, Public Outreach Meetings - Public comment taken via e-mail, snail mail, at public meetings, and through Facebook posts
• June, Draft 2 Parks Legacy Plan released with proposed recommendations
• June – November, Prepare Final Parks Legacy Plan
• December, Presentations to City Council

Budget

Funding for the project comes from Parks’ operating budget.

*Note: To view a PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader. Download it for free at www.adobe.com.