HomeMy WebLinkAbout2.a. Public Park Planning in the Greystone DevelopmentEXECUTIVE SUMMARY
City Council Work Session Meeting:June 13, 2016
AGENDA ITEM: Public ParkPlanning in the Greystone AGENDA SECTION:
DevelopmentDiscussion
PREPARED BY: Dan Schultz, Parks and Recreation
AGENDA NO.2.a.
Director
ATTACHMENTS: Concept Plans A, B, Cand Parks, Trails
APPROVED BY: ddj
and Open Space Map
RECOMMENDED ACTION: None, discussion only.
ISSUE
The Parks and Recreation Commission have been discussing the plan for the future neighborhood park in
the Greystone Development.
The process for coming up with a final park plan started with having Loucks and Associates create two
concept plans, A and B. The two concept plans were created to be used for discussion purposes and for
space planning. The plans both have some similar amenities that are popular in many parks and should be
considered for the final park plan. Those amenities include a playground, gaga pit, trails, basketball court,
pollinator gardens, and a sun shelter. To better help define the space that we are working with, staff asked
that an outdoor hockey rink be included in Concept A and a small baseball/softball field be included in
Concept B. Both concepts included a parking lot. Staff informed the Parks and Recreation Commission
that depending on what amenities are included in the final plan, a parking lot might not be necessary.
Please also note that Concept B includes accepting additional park land that would be dedicated with the
future development to the east of the existing Greystone Development.
After reviewing the Concepts A and B, the Parks and Recreation Commission recommended that we
create a final park plan, Concept C, that included a playground, gaga pit, trails, flexible open play area,
basketball court, community garden with water, water fountain, pollinator gardens and landscaping. The
Commission also discussed adding a small “skate place” with a couple of pieces of skate park equipment
and some sort of public art.
The Commission felt that including a hockey rink or baseball/softball field, would be using up a large
portion of the park land for only one amenity and pushing everything else out to the edges of the park and
closer to the neighboring resident’s yards. They also had concerns that Concepts A and B might limit the
use the neighborhood residents might have to the park because of the scheduled activities that would take
place there. The parking lot was also discussed and the Commission felt if the park is designed for more
neighborhood type activities a parking lot would not be needed and that a small parallel parking area might
work. Concerns were also brought up about the hockey rink and baseball/softball field only providing
seasonal amenities that would better fit in a larger neighborhood park settingwhere more amenities are
usually offered.
BACKGROUND
The Greystone Development is located east of Akron Avenue and about a half mile north of County Road
42. The 2008 Parks, Trails and Open Space Master Plan identifies a search area for future park,N-4 near
the Greystone Development. Because of the railroad tracks to the north of Greystone and Akron Avenue
to the west, staff felt locating a park in this area would provide a good opportunity to safely provide some
recreational opportunities to this area. The parkland is approximately four acres in size and does have an
overhead power line easement along the east side of the park. This park will be similar in size to a couple
of our other smaller neighborhood parks, Birch Park and Biscayne Park.
SUMMARY
Staff would like for the City Council to review the final concept plan and provide feedback to staff. After
receiving feedback from the City Council, staff is planning to hold a neighborhood meeting to share the
plan with residents.
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