HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022 04 05 AIS_Community Engagement Plan_Willamalane Park and Rec PlanAGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Meeting Date: 4/5/2022
Meeting Type: Regular Meeting
Staff
Contact/Dept.:
Monica Sather/DPW
Staff Phone No: 541-736-1038
Estimated Time: 30 Minutes
COMMITTEE FOR CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT (CCI) Council Goals: Mandate
ITEM TITLE: COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN: WILLAMALANE PARK AND
RECREATION DISTRICT COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
ACTION
REQUESTED:
Review and approve, or approve with modifications, Willamalane Park and Recreation
District’s Community Engagement Plan for its 2023 Comprehensive Plan
ISSUE
STATEMENT:
In accordance with Springfield’s adopted Citizen Involvement Program and Statewide
Planning Goal 1: Citizen Involvement, Willamalane prepared a Draft Community
Engagement Plan for its 2023 Comprehensive Plan. Staff request input on and approval
of the Draft Community Engagement Plan early on in the project to inform next steps.
ATTACHMENTS: ATTACHMENT 1: Draft Community Engagement Plan
DISCUSSION: Willamalane Park and Recreation District (“Willamalane”) recently initiated a project
to update its 2012 Park and Recreation Comprehensive Plan (“Plan”). The updates are
estimated for completion in 2023, with adoption to occur soon after Willamalane
finalizes the Plan.
Willamalane’s Plan is a 20-year vision of enhancing the quality of life for Springfield
and its immediately surrounding area by investing in parks, programs, and people. The
current Plan identifies how the vision for these investments can come to life through
prioritization and financing. To incorporate the updated Plan as the Recreation Element
of the overall Springfield Comprehensive Plan, the Springfield City Council and Lane
County Board of Commissioners will co-adopt Willamalane’s Plan following a
recommendation by the Springfield Planning Commission—a process that involves
public hearings and ordinance adoption.
The Springfield Committee for Citizen Involvement plays a key role in this process. To
promote and enhance opportunities to work with community members on City-related
planning projects, Springfield’s Committee for Citizen Involvement evaluates and
approves Community Engagement Plans. Community Engagement Plans propose
actions to seek an effective exchange of information during the formation and adoption
of new and amended land use plans.
The Draft Community Engagement Plan for amending Willamalane’s and Springfield’s
Comprehensive Plans:
• Provides information about the project’s scope with a focus on process;
• Specifies goals for engagement;
• Clarifies strategies in the context of those goals to encourage and maintain open
channels of communication and meaningful engagement with the public; and
• Identifies considerations for diversity, equity, and inclusion within those strategies.
At this meeting, Willamalane staff will provide an overview of the project, highlight the
content of the Community Engagement Plan, and will be available for questions.
Community Engagement Plan
Willamalane Park and Recreation District
Comprehensive Plan 2023
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I. INTRODUCTION
Willamalane Park and Recreation District (Willamalane) recently initiated a project to update its
2012 Park and Recreation Comprehensive Plan (“Comprehensive Plan,” “Plan”). To incorporate
Willamalane’s updated Plan as the Recreation Element of the overall Springfield
Comprehensive Plan, the City Council and Lane County Board of Commissioners must co-
adopt the Plan as a legislative Plan Amendment—a process that involves public hearings and
adoption of an ordinance. The process for developing the plan must comply with Oregon’s
Statewide Planning Goals, including Goal 1 - Citizen Involvement. This document provides the
context, scope, and timing of the community engagement strategies that will be incorporated
into the planning process for this Plan update.
II. PROJECT BACKGROUND
Willamalane operates five recreation facilities and 46 parks and natural areas totaling nearly
1,600 acres. Highlights include 10 waterfront areas, 29 miles of hiking and biking trails, 13
sports fields, and 27 playgrounds. A portion of the 29 miles of trails also serve the City’s
transportation system in the form of paved paths. With these parks, natural areas, and
recreation sites, Willamalane offers recreation programs to people of all ages and abilities to
serve their mission of delivering “exceptional parks and recreation to enrich the lives of
everyone” they serve.
Willamalane strategically plans to meet its service needs by exploring opportunities for future
growth, improvements, and priorities for land. Updates to its Comprehensive Plan will provide a
20-year vision and a prioritized project list to guide Willamalane’s fiscal planning and future
work. Willamalane’s administrative policies call for major updates to its Comprehensive Plan
every 10 years.
Willamalane has contracted with BerryDunn (“Consultants”, previously known as “GreenPlay”),
to assist with the Plan update. The process for the update is heavily founded on public
engagement. In addition to engagement, the Consultants will do a thorough analysis of all parks
and facilities, management & operations, and finances to identify gaps, barriers and
opportunities for Willamalane to prioritize moving forward. The final Plan will include visions for
the future, a capital improvement plan, and a financial strategy along with metrics to assist with
implementation.
The community engagement strategies incorporated in this plan include some that will be
facilitated by Consultants and some facilitated by Willamalane staff. The intention is to reach as
many community members as possible and incorporate the values identified in the recently
adopted Willamalane Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Strategic Action Plan.
Attachment 1, Page 1 of 12
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III. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT GOALS
The community engagement strategies selected for his plan support the following goals in order
to inform the overall comprehensive planning process:
1. Promote project awareness throughout the planning process.
a. Find opportunities to engage early with various groups in the community.
b. Provide as many opportunities for community members to engage as possible.
c. Follow up with those that engage:
i. Provide opportunities for patrons to see they were “heard” and how
feedback was integrated.
ii. Promote ongoing involvement.
d. Build relationships with participants and provide information about programs,
events & services Willamalane offers.
2. Gain a deeper understanding of who Willamalane serves.
a. Who does Willamalane currently serve? Who is not being served?
b. What are the demographics of users/non-users (age, race/ethnicity, families,
renters/homeowners, gender, socioeconomic status)?
c. What demographics use Willamlane’s facilities the most/least?
d. What programs, parks, trails, activities, and events are accessed the most/least?
e. How does the community learn about programs, events and services offered by
Willamalane?
f. How satisfied is the community with Willamalane’s offerings?
g. What are common hardships that make accessing park and recreation services
challenging (physical/cognitive limitations, socioeconomic limitations, language
barrier, schedule, feeling of safety or belonging, etc.)
3. Learn about gaps, barriers, needs, and preferences within the park district.
a. What does Willamalane do well? What can Willamalane do better?
b. What improvements or changes would increase use of Willamalane parks,
facilities, and programs?
c. What new park opportunities should be considered?
d. What new recreation opportunities should be considered?
e. What is Springfield lacking?
4. Understand the community’s priorities for park and recreation for the coming future.
a. What are the most desired park/facility improvements?
b. What are the most desired recreational opportunities?
c. What types of park & facility improvement projects would the community fund?
5. Gain support of final plan recommendations.
Attachment 1, Page 2 of 12
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IV. TARGET AUDIENCE
● General public - current users and non-users
● Target user groups and demographics as stated in the Oregon’s Statewide
Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. These groups include: older adults (and those
with limited abilities), diverse populations, youth, and those with low income.
Willamalane would like to work with partners to engage Latinx and Indigenous residents
living in the district.
● Community partners in Springfield. This includes the City of Springfield, Lane County,
Springfield School District, Springfield Utility Board, local nonprofits that provide
community services and many other agencies that contribute towards furthering
Willamalane’s mission.
● Willamalane Staff
V. PROCESS OVERVIEW AND TIMELINE
Understanding community priorities for park and recreation programs and facilities forms the
basis for any parks and recreation plan, and community collaboration and support is essential to
the Plan’s implementation. Community members and key stakeholders need to be intimately
involved during the project in order to create a fully implementable Plan. Exhibit A shows the
tasks identified in the Consultant’s contract for the overall project and how community
engagement is embedded within the overall planning effort.
Willamalane intends to engage with the community early and often throughout the planning
process through a diverse set of strategies. Exhibit B showcases all of the engagement
strategies and their associated timelines. There are two benchmarks in the engagement
process where efforts will be amplified. The first benchmark will focus on goals 2, to better
understand the community, and 3, to understand gaps, barriers, needs, and preferences of the
community. The second benchmark will occur later in the process after results from the
statistically valid survey have been analyzed. The focus of this effort will be goals 4, to
understand future priorities, and 5, to gauge support for the draft recommendations in the plan.
INVOLVED PARTIES & OVERSIGHT
Willamalane staff and the Consultants will work collaboratively to ensure maximum participation
in the engagement process. The Consultants have worked on over 600 comparable plans for
other communities and their knowledge and expertise will be a critical asset to the planning
process. During the engagement process they will serve as a neutral third party to facilitate
interviews, focus groups, and public meetings. They will also facilitate two rounds of surveys,
including one statistically valid survey. Willamalane staff will provide support for these and take
leadership of engagement strategies that amplify awareness of the project and promote
participation. Willamalane will also implement strategies that support the inclusion of groups that
may not otherwise participate through typical forms of engagement or that Willamalane has a
special interest in hearing from.
Attachment 1, Page 3 of 12
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Willamalane’s Community Engagement team will be taking a strong leadership role in reviewing
final plans for engagement activities and any and all content prior to it going public. The
Planning and Development Department at Willamalane will manage the overall project, the
contract with the Consultants, and assist with the implementation of the strategies included in
this plan.
Willamalane’s staff will be actively engaged through the entire planning process. The overall
project is being vetted through a Project Team that includes management representation from
all Divisions, and a project Advisory Group that includes staff from various departments across
the agency. A Communication Plan diagram is included as Figure 1 showing the meeting
frequency for key players of the project. Staff not actively engaged through these teams will
have opportunities to contribute through staff surveys and staff meetings facilitated by the
Consultants. There will also be many opportunities for staff to assist with the implementation of
engagement strategies such as the Project Pitch and/or Pop Up Events (described in the next
section).
Figure 1. Monthly cycle of communication between Consultants and Willamalane to oversee the planning
process and outcomes.
CITY INVOLVEMENT
The Consultants, Willamalane, and City staff will ensure the update to Willamalane’s 2012 Plan
meets requirements for legislative land use decisions. The City, Willamalane, and Consultants
will also work together to maximize areas of potential collaboration, including transportation,
economic development, operations, and natural resources. Springfield’s Planning Commission
and City Council will play a key role in the process to adopt the Plan as a land use decision.
Attachment 1, Page 4 of 12
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There will be one or more Work Sessions with the Springfield Planning Commission and the
Springfield City Council before the public hearings.
VI. ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES
Feedback from the community, along with additional research will strongly inform the
recommendations and priorities identified in the final Plan. The strategies presented below aim
to reach a diverse audience in as many ways as possible.
1. ONLINE ENGAGEMENT: willamalane.org/future
● Target Audience: General public
● Lead Agency: Willamalane
● Timeframe: Ongoing
● Measure of Success: Willamalane will be able to monitor web page analytics to assess
activity and engagement levels. A goal of 4,000 page views to willamalane.org/future
has been established. This is based on previous outreach and engagement campaigns
Willamalane has completed in the last 12 months.
● Incentives: N/A
● Summary: Willamalane will host a landing page (www.willamalane.org/future) for this
project. The page will include: a project description, project contacts, a timeline of
upcoming milestones and events, promotion of engagement strategies, an opportunity to
submit comments, an opportunity to sign up for future email updates, and potentially
other interactive tools for providing feedback (e.g., maps, polls, etc.).
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: The landing page will be able to be
translated into over 100 languages using Google Chrome's translation tool.
2. SURVEYS
● Target Audience: General public
● Lead Agency: RRC Associates (sub-consultant) in coordination with Consultants and
Willamalane.
● Timeframe: (1) Mid-summer (both paper and online) and (1) late fall-winter (online only)
● Measures of Success: Success will be determined by achieving a 95% confidence for
the statistically valid survey. For online/non-statistically valid surveys there is a target of
1,000 responses.
● Incentives: RRC Associates will provide incentives for participating in the survey.
● Summary: Two rounds of surveys will occur during this project. The first survey will be a
statistically valid survey that will launch early summer after the first round of
engagement. Questions for this survey will be formed based on information learned
through the first set of focus groups, stakeholder interviews, the public meeting, and staff
survey/engagement. It will be mailed to a random invitation sample of approximately
2,000 to 3,000 people living within the district boundary. Appropriate outreach will be
Attachment 1, Page 5 of 12
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completed to target statistically valid results with a margin of error +/- 5 at a 95%
confidence level. This will allow both district users and non-users to provide input.
Following closure of the random invitation survey, an open link version of the same
survey will be published, and the remaining district residents will be encouraged to
complete the survey online. Those participating in the open-link survey will be able to be
differentiated from those participating in the statistically valid survey as to not skew or
duplicate results.
A second online survey will be pushed out at the end of the second round of
engagement (late fall-winter) to validate what was heard and gauge support of the draft
recommendations being prepared for the plan. Willamalane plans for this to be an online
survey, however if deemed valuable as the project progresses this may transition to a
second statistically valid survey following the same process noted above.
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: The survey will be produced in both
English and Spanish, the two most common languages spoken in the Springfield
community. Reasonable accommodations will be made for residents who cannot
complete the survey as it is posted by contacting Willamalane’s Inclusion Coordinator.
3. FOCUS GROUPS
● Target Audience: Community partners and representatives of target demographics
● Lead Agency: Consultants will facilitate, Willamalane will recruit and host.
● Timeframe: (3-4) April 2022, (2-3) Fall 2002
● Measures of Success: Minimum of 6 participants in at least 5 Focus Group discussions
including representation from each demographic identified by the district (see below).
● Incentives: $50 gift card, snacks and drinks for those participating in person.
● Summary: Willamalane will invite project stakeholders such as community leaders,
organizers, user group representatives, and/or affiliates of local community groups to
participate in these focus groups. These small group discussions will be facilitated by
Consultants in order to build an initial assessment of park and recreation opportunities,
challenges, existing conditions, needs, trends, and goals. Lessons learned through this
process will help inform the questions used for the creation of the statistically valid
survey that will launch directly after these efforts.
Based on best practices and recommendations from Consultants, the focus groups
should be representative of the Springfield community. The groups should include both
currently served and historically underrepresented community members. To facilitate
this, Willamalane developed a roster of demographics they will seek when recruiting for
this project, some examples include: older adults, teens, racial and ethnic diversity,
those with limited abilities, current users of parks and facilities, special interest groups,
etc. Willamalane will aim to include representation from at least 5 of these demographics
in each meeting.
Attachment 1, Page 6 of 12
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The focus groups will be hosted at a Willamalane facility with virtual/hybrid options for
those who choose it. Food and snacks will be provided and participants will be
reimbursed with a gift card for their time and participation. Willamalane staff will be
available to answer questions about the district through this process; however, will not
participate in the conversations otherwise.
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: Focus groups participants will receive a
$50 gift card for their time and contributions. Through the registration process
participants will be asked if they will require translation or any other reasonable
accommodations in order to participate so Willamalane can make accommodations in
advance of the event. Participants will be strongly encouraged to attend in person;
however, virtual attendance will be available for those who request it.
4. STAKEHOLDER INTERVIEWS
● Target Audience: Community leaders and decision makers
● Lead Agency: Consultants will host these conversations, Willamalane will schedule
● Timeframe: (3-4) in April 2022
● Measures of Success: Completion of 3-4 interviews by the consultant team
● Incentives: N/A
● Summary: These interviews will cover similar topics as those addressed in the Focus
Group Discussion, however will be conversational in nature and will have the overall
intention of providing the consultant team any additional context or information needed
to understand the needs of the district and the priorities of those who influence it.
Participants in each interview will hopefully include:
(1) Willamalane Board members and Superintendent,
(2) representatives and decision makers from the City of Springfield,
(3) representatives and decision makers from the School District.
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: Reasonable accommodations will be
made for accessibility, scheduling, language or any other considerations that may limit a
stakeholder’s ability to participate.
5. TOWN HALL MEETINGS
● Target Audience: General public
● Lead Agency: Consultants will facilitate, Willamalane will help coordinate
● Timeframe: (1) April 2022, (1) Fall 2022, (1) Spring 2023
● Measures of Success: Attendance of 100 people from the community
● Incentives: N/A
● Summary: These meetings are intended to share progress to date and ask community
members to confirm that what the consultants heard is correct and complete.
Attachment 1, Page 7 of 12
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○ Public Forum #1 Information Gathering (present input received at initial
engagement)
○ Public Forum #2 Findings (Survey results, demographics, trends, and Level of
Service)
○ Public Forum #3 Draft Report
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: A Spanish language and ASL translator
will be available during the presentations.
6. INTERNAL WILLAMALANE STAFF ENGAGEMENT
● Target Audience: Willamalane staff at all levels in all departments
● Lead Agency: Consultants
● Timeframe: (1) April 2022, (2) Fall 2022
● Measures of Success: 40% response rate on survey, meetings/interviews with staff
from each division.
● Incentives: N/A
● Summary: Staff will be engaged via an online survey and through in person meetings.
Meetings will occur during both rounds of engagement (Spring/Fall). Consultants will
use these to understand specifics about how Willamalane is operated and ways
operations could be more efficient.
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: All staff will be able to attend during
their paid work hours. Those who are not able to attend will be able to respond to the
virtual survey during work hours.
7. POP-UP EVENTS
● Target Audience: General public, target user groups, community partners
● Lead Agency: Willamalane
● Timeframe: Ongoing
● Measures of Success: 6 pop up events at locations outside of Willamalane
events/facilities + 6 events within Willamalane events/facilities
● Incentives: Willamalane will provide small, fun giveaways at events
● Summary: These events will occur at both Willamalane and non-Willamalane
programs/sites and high traffic locations. The main objective is to let people know about
the project and encourage community members to participate in the survey or other
engagement strategies. These events will include fun, interactive ways that people can
provide feedback as well.
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: By creating a mobile promotional event
Willamalane can target groups that may not already be engaging with the agency.
Willamalane will provide bilingual material (English/Spanish) and include a Spanish
speaking staff member or partner to the extent possible.
Attachment 1, Page 8 of 12
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8. PROJECT PITCH
● Target Audience: Target demographics and community partners
● Lead Agency: Willamalane
● Timeframe: March-May 2022, or as needed
● Measures of Success: Complete a minimum of 4 pitches to public groups
● Incentives: N/A
● Summary: Willamalane staff will attend community meetings and give a pitch about the
Comprehensive Plan project to spread awareness and let stakeholders know how to
engage throughout the process. Some possible groups may include: the Springfield Area
Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club of Springfield, Springfield Bike and Pedestrian
Committee, Friends of the Springfield Library, Huerto de la Familia, Community Alliance
of Lane County, etc.
● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: Willamalane will work with groups prior
to attending the meeting to determine whether Spanish speaking staff or translation
services will be beneficial.
9. EXTERNAL ADVISORY GROUPS / LISTENING SESSIONS
● Target Audience: Target demographics and community partners
● Lead Agency: Willamalane
● Timeframe: At least (1) meeting in May, with the rest of the meetings occurring as
possible throughout the project.
● Measures of Success: Minimum of 5 participants representing different perspectives
per meeting. The number and focus of overall groups/sessions will be determined based
on feedback received in the first round of engagement.
● Incentives: $50 gift card, snacks and drinks for those participating in person.
● Summary: These meetings will include groups of people invited based on their
professional or lived experiences in order to inform specific content in the plan. These
exact topics and groups will become more apparent as the planning process moves
forward, however some key subject areas already being considered as focuses for these
meetings include: natural resources, accessibility in parks/facilities, culturally responsive
design for parks and programs, establishing relationships with native people, and
understanding barriers for Latinx and other Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC).
Each group will meet at least one time during the planning process. Meetings will be
facilitated by key Willamalane staff with support from Willamalane’s DEI Committee and
external partners and groups with expertise in the subject matter as appropriate.
Settings and structure for these conversations will be informal and will occur in a
neutral/non-threatening environment.
Attachment 1, Page 9 of 12
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● Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Considerations: Willamalane will collaborate with
existing partners and groups in the community that are already doing work with these
interests in mind to recruit and facilitate these meetings. Facilitation will include options
for Spanish speakers, ASL interpreters, other reasonable accommodations requested by
attendees, and hopefully childcare. Attendees will be reimbursed for their time (through
gift cards) and snacks and drinks will be provided.
Attachment 1, Page 10 of 12
Exhibit A: Overall Project Scope and Work Plan
Attachment 1, Page 11 of 12
Exhibit B: Sequencing and layout of proposed Community Engagement Strategies.
Green Tasks will be led by Consultants and orange tasks will be led by Willamalane staff; however, both groups will be working collaboratively to support
all aspects of public engagement. Within the timeline there are two consolidated engagement efforts: (1) in the spring to determine needs and (2) one in
the fall to assess priorities for the district.
Attachment 1, Page 12 of 12