Over the next several months, Port St. Lucie residents will get a chance to voice their opinions on parks and recreation matters.
They’ll be surveyed. They’ll be invited to workshops. They’ll get to weigh in on what they want, don’t want, and help craft a 10-year master plan.
“There is no right or wrong way to do this,” said consultant David Barth, who was tapped earlier this summer to drive the process of creating the plan.
The city has control of about 41 square miles – about 35 percent of the city – which can be used for recreational purposes. But before the City Council just starts building ball fields, aquatic centers, skate parks and the like, council members want to know what the residents want.
“I want to be ahead of the curve,” said Councilwoman Jolien Caraballo. She explained that she’d like to see multi-user parks and spaces that accommodate multiple uses.
Vice Mayor Shannon Martin agreed, noting that she wants parks to be destination places – spaces that attract and keep people there for a period of time.
Barth said there are no standards for figuring a level of service for municipal parks. Instead, each municipality must determine that for themselves.
He has suggested a multi-pronged approach that includes examining what the city already has, how much the city already spends, and what more the city could do.
In all, Barth suggested the process will take about 10 months to complete before having a draft master plan to present. The council recommended having the draft complete in time for the summer retreat in July 2019, during which the council could discuss the findings.
Already, Barth plans to hold a public workshop sometime in November to get feedback from participants on what’s important to them and what needs are not getting met.
