Parks, Trails & Recreation Master Plan

» » Establish a tree standard forestry employee. Typically, it is 2,000 trees to maintain per forester in a system. » » Re-consider establishing a work-order system to track true costs of park maintenance in the system and what it cost to maintain a standard. This should also support drive time costs as the city continues to grow. Establish how close the Public Works Park Maintenance Division meets their maintenance standards they have in place for the parks and amenities they manage. » » Establish standards for landscape beds in the city and establish a cost per square ft. as a set standard for each bed versus staying at 10% of the total maintenance budget. This allows the city to focus plantings in high visibility areas including downtown and certain high traffic parks they want to highlight. » » Consider re-establishing a Business Improvement District BID) for landscaping for the downtown area as well as along major transportation corridors. » » Evaluate the seasonal pay rates every other year to keep pace with other entities providing similar services, so that Public Works-Parks Maintenance positions stay attractive to the potential workforce population. » » The city is hiring a volunteer coordinator and it will be important they work with the Public Works Parks Maintenance Department and Parks and Recreation Department staff to understand each volunteer position they are recruiting for, and what the job entails to help back fill jobs when they are not filled with volunteers. » » Currently 35% of the total parks and recreation budget including public works park maintenance budget is dedicated to maintenance. Typically, it is 50% across the United States when comparing similar size systems. It is recognized that in Shakopee most of the parks and facilities have been built over the last ten years which helps to keep the maintenance cost

down but as infrastructure grows older more costs will occur.

» » The city has a good turnover schedule for replacement of equipment. However, the same should apply to amenities such as playground equipment, sports courts, lighting, etc. » » While crime wasn’t identified as an overall issue, the city police department could install security cameras in areas prone to vandalism and graffiti to prosecute violators in parks to be effective. The presence of cameras and signage has been an effective deterrent in other communities and could be targeted in any potential problem areas. SUMMARY Operations and maintenance appear to be meeting community expectations despite a workforce and budget that are well below similar-sized communities. Shakopee should address this shortfall in an economically responsible manner and continue to monitor expectations and performance in the future as more park facilities are developed. This is critical for the Parks, Trails, and Recreation system’s ability to meet the community’s needs, attract new residents and businesses, and maintain the existing strengths of the system that include: » » A diverse park system as it applies to neighborhood parks, community parks, sports complexes, natural resources areas and available open space areas in the city. » » Plentiful acreage of park land dispersed well throughout the city. » » Newer playgrounds and premier baseball at Schleper Stadium. » » Equipment in the parks are for the most part up to date. » » Great indoor space for community recreation services, an aquatic center, sports courts and ice rinks for people of all ages to use. » » Good equipment to work with for Public Works- Park Maintenance staff. » » Excellent outdoor facilities as it applies to sports fields, trails,

system vision

268

SHAKOPEE PARKS, TRAILS, AND RECREATION MASTER PLAN | IMPLEMENTATION