HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022 11 15 AIS_Willamalane Comp Plan AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Meeting Date: 11/15/2022
Meeting Type: Work Session
Staff Contact/Dept.: Chelsea Hartman/DPW
Staff Phone No: 541-726-3648
Estimated Time: 40 min.
PLANNING COMMISSION (PC) Council Goals: Promote and Enhance
our Hometown Feel
while Focusing on
Livability and
Environmental Quality
ITEM TITLE: WILLAMALANE’S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE
ACTION
REQUESTED:
Review progress toward completing the Needs Assessment phase of the 2023
update to the Willamalane Park and Recreation District Comprehensive Plan
(“Comprehensive Plan”). Determine whether the analysis, research, and community
engagement efforts completed for the Plan thus far are adequate to move forward
with the project’s final phases.
ISSUE
STATEMENT:
Willamalane Park and Recreation District started updating its Comprehensive Plan
in March of 2022. The Planning Commission will provide a formal
recommendation to City Council on whether to adopt the updated Comprehensive
Plan into the Springfield Comprehensive Plan, as a land use decision in compliance
with Statewide Planning Goal 8: Recreational Needs.
ATTACHMENTS: Attachment 1: Briefing Memorandum
Attachment 2: Project Timeline
DISCUSSION/
FINANCIAL
IMPACT:
Willamalane Park and Recreation District (“District”) staff attended the April 5,
2022 work session of the Planning Commission in its role as the Springfield
Committee for Citizen Involvement (CCI). Willamalane introduced the
Comprehensive Plan Update project and the CCI approved the project’s
Community Engagement Plan (CEP).
Per the approved CEP, Willamalane and its consultants will provide a mid-project
progress update at this November 2022 work session on the initial findings of the
Needs Assessment (this portion of work is nearing completion). Willamalane and
its consultant team will also seek input from the Planning Commission on whether
it is satisfied with the approach used to assess the needs in the District before the
findings for this phase of the work are complete.
The findings will inform the next 20 years of priorities for the District in the final
Willamalane Park and Recreation District Comprehensive Plan (“Plan”). The Plan
is estimated for completion in late Spring 2023. To incorporate the updated Plan as
the Recreation Element of the overall Springfield Comprehensive Plan, the City
Council and Lane County Board of Commissioners must co-adopt Willamalane’s
Plan—a process that involves public hearings and adoption of an ordinance.
The City is dedicating staff time to stay informed, provide input in the planning
process, and to manage the adoption process. Future plans within the final
document may have longer-term financial impacts. Such examples include
partnering on grants for joint priorities, collaborating on joint priorities for
transportation projects, and/or proving resources (e.g., equipment for operations)
for project sites owned or co-owned by the City.
M E M O R A N D U M City of Springfield
Date: 11/7/2022
To: Springfield Planning Commission
From: Chelsea Hartman, Senior Planner BRIEFING
Subject: Willamalane’s Comprehensive Plan Update MEMORANDUM
ISSUE:
Willamalane Park and Recreation District started updating its Comprehensive Plan in March of
2022. The Planning Commission will provide a formal recommendation to City Council on
whether to adopt the updated Comprehensive Plan into the Springfield Comprehensive Plan, as a
land use decision in compliance with Statewide Planning Goal 8: Recreational Needs.
COUNCIL GOALS/
MANDATE:
Promote and Enhance our Hometown Feel While Focusing on Livability and Environmental
Quality
BACKGROUND:
Willamalane Park and Recreation District (“Willamalane”) initiated a project to update its 2012
Park and Recreation Comprehensive Plan (“Comprehensive Plan,” “Plan”) in Spring of 2022.
Completion of the draft Plan is estimated for late Spring 2023. Willamalane’s updated Plan will
serve as the Recreation Element of the Springfield Comprehensive Plan.
Willamalane retained a private firm, BerryDunn, LLC (“consultants”), to complete much of the
project work. Consultant work includes research, assessments, and community engagement. It
will be the foundation for the creation of priorities within the final Plan. Prior to defining these
priorities, Willamalane and its consultants will seek Planning Commission and Council input on
whether the depth and breadth of research, analysis, and community engagement conducted are
sufficient to serve as a foundation for the rest of the project.
Process & Progress
The four project stages identified by the consultants working on this project include: (1)
information gathering; (2) findings and visioning; (3) draft recommendations; and, (4) final Plan
adoption. The Plan is currently on track and is in the late stages of the Needs Assessment and
Parks and Facilities Analysis (phase 2 of the project). Attachment 2 shows a high-level overview
of project phases, tasks, and timelines.
Assessment & Analysis
The consultants are nearly complete with many of the assessment and analysis portions of this
project. These tasks include a:
• Demographic analysis of the community within Springfield’s Urban Growth Boundary
(UGB)1
1 The demographic analysis was set to Springfield's UGB since that was the closest boundary to Willamalane's district
boundary that had available information for population estimates and forecasts. This is consistent with Willamalane's
2012 demographic analysis. The area where the district boundary extends outside the UGB is very minimal and the
difference in population would be nominal. Otherwise, the planning boundary for this project follows Willamalane's
district boundary, except for areas where the UGB extends beyond the district boundary. In those cases, the planning
boundary is extended to align with the UGB so all areas outside city limits/inside UGB are accounted for in
Willamalane's planning areas.
Attachment 1, Page 1 of 3
MEMORANDUM Page 2
• Park & recreation trends analysis, which identifies national and statewide trends for
parks and recreation
• Recreation program analysis, which looks at opportunities and strengths for
Willamalane’s recreation programs
• Park & facility assessment, which identifies the quantity and types of parks and facilities
and assesses their quality based on the experiences they provide
• Natural areas and trails assessment
• Level of service analysis that helps identify where gaps exist in Willamalane parks,
facilities, and services
• Maintenance and operation evaluation
• Financial and organizational analysis
• Assessment of opportunities for alternative funding and partnerships
Future phases of work for this project will include a capital improvement plan and development
of performance measures and an implementation plan.
Stakeholder Engagement
The engagement efforts conducted for this project are in the project’s Community Engagement
Plan, reviewed by the Springfield Committee for Citizen Involvement in April 2022. Consultants
and Willamalane staff worked collaboratively to facilitate these engagement strategies, some of
which also involved City coordination and planning. To date, the following efforts are complete:
Community Engagement
• 3 focus groups (approximately 40 participants)
• 11 stakeholder interviews with community leaders (Coordinated with the City)
• 5 Willamalane subject matter expert interviews
• 1 hybrid public Town Hall meeting (29 attendees and 60+ views of online recording)
• 8 project pitch presentations to community partners
• 50+ direct emails to community partners
• Tabled at 20 events in the community and informally polled over 1,700 residents
• Statistically valid survey (262 responses, +/- 6% margin of error)
• Open Link online survey (1,336 responses)
• Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee Meeting (BPAC): gave project overview
and sought guidance on next steps for BPAC involvement (City-coordinated effort)
• Conducted teen engagement in two local middle and two high school classes that
resulted in just over 100 teen survey responses and a series of final projects that were
presented to an audience of District staff
• One community conversation with 22 Latinx members of the community that resulted in
qualitative findings relating to parks, recreation programs and events, and
communication
• One Tribal Community Planning Dialogue with over 20 Native American/Alaskan
Native members of the community to discuss these community members’ values and
priorities (Coordinated with the City)
Agency Engagement
• 3 staff Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats analysis meetings
(approximately 30 participants)
• Online staff survey (100+ responses)
• Hosted an external advisory group meeting with natural resource professionals and
received feedback from 13 agency partners (Coordinated with the City)
Attachment 1, Page 2 of 3
MEMORANDUM Page 3
Willamalane and its Consultants will complete the remaining tasks and proposed work within
the Community Engagement Work Plan as follows:
• 3 themed focus groups addressing: trails, accessibility & inclusion, and community
wellness (week of 11/13/22)
• 1 public Town Hall meeting (11/16/22 at 6pm) to discuss findings
• Additional engagement with agency staff
Initial Findings
During the presentation portion of the work session, Willamalane staff will share initial findings
from the analysis, research, and engagement efforts. The presentation will highlight stakeholder
feedback about current District-wide strengths and opportunities for Willamalane’s park and
recreation system to improve.
Next Steps
The week of November 13, 2022 will be full of activities to share initial findings and conduct
final engagement efforts for this phase of the project. Upon completion of these tasks, and
presenting progress updates to City and County officials, Consultants will host a work session
with the Willamalane Board of Directors on November 30, 2022 to discuss District priorities and
visions. Consultants plan to have a draft Plan complete in the winter of 2023, and a final Plan
adopted by the Willamalane Board of Directors in June 2023. Co-adoption by Springfield and
Lane County will follow, involving both City and County Planning Commissions prior to final
adoption by City Council and Lane County’s Board of Commissioners.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Review progress toward completing the Needs Assessment
phase of the 2023 update to the Willamalane Park and Recreation District Comprehensive Plan.
Determine whether the analysis, research, and community engagement efforts completed for the
Plan thus far are adequate to move forward with the project’s final phases.
Attachment 1, Page 3 of 3
Project Timeline
Attachment 2, Page 1 of 1