Anchorage Bowl Park, Natural Resource, And Recreation .

Executive SummaryFoundations of PlanningThe purpose of the AnchorageBowl Park, Natural Resource,and Recreation Facility Plan isto provide a model for applyinga systematic approach to theplanning of parks, recreation,and natural use areas. The modelensures that a fair and equitablebalance of parks and facilities areprovided to all residents. The Plan isintended to be used by communityleaders to improve parks andrecreation for all citizens. It providesa measurable, objective, anddefendable process to acquire,develop, and manage parks,natural resources, and recreationfacilities in the Anchorage Bowl.The fundamental reason forundertaking a park and recreationmaster plan is that park andrecreation services are essentialfor the public health, welfare, andsafety in the community. Planningfor these services is necessary tocreate and maintain a healthyand desirable community inwhich people can live, work,and play. While the master planitself is important, translating theassessment of community need intoactions is the overriding purposeof a park and recreation masterplan. These actions will create aninclusive, orderly, cost-effective,and publicly supported park andrecreation system.A park and recreation master planmust accommodate the future toensure that immediate short- andlong-range decisions relative topark and recreation services aresound, satisfy a broad range ofneeds, and benefit all membersof the community. It is essentialthat the master plan respond toAnchorage needs, values, andxconditions in developing thecommunity’s ultimate park andrecreation services.A park and recreation masterplan is an essential building blockfor accurate capital planningof overall local governmentfunctions. Park planning givesrationale to funders for supportingthe organization’s program andservices. When competing forfunds with other departmententities (whether it be police,social services, utilities in the publicsector), the various social programsof the nonprofit sector associations,or with amenities provided byprivate-sector enterprises, a plangives “competitive advantage.”If an organization has a wellconceived plan with solid rationale,the manager and those serving inan advocacy position can moreeffectively compete for funds.Most organizations should expecta parks plan to be their mostvaluable tool for future decisionmaking. A properly implementedplan is vital for efficientmanagement and operations of aparks and recreation organization.It is the operational blueprint for themanager and is the main valuabletool for ongoing decision making;it is the director’s responsibility toimplement the plan.Parks and recreation mustbe, and in the past has been,a key ingredient in the longrange community planningfor Anchorage. Cooperativecommunity planning means morethan just sitting around a tableand discussing generalities ofwhat each organization is doing.It means getting together beforethe fact to consider the needs,resources, and objectives of eachorganization and work out plansthat integrate each organizationinto the community as a whole,whether it is physical resourcesplanning, social planning, or both.Long-range planning expeditescoordination of different publicentities and the managementdirections taken by each. Themajority of cities and countiesacross the United States havedeveloped prescriptive guidesfor the development of theirrespective neighborhoods andcommunities. The park andrecreation manager shouldrecognize that governmentalentities should not have individuallydeveloped and isolated planningscenarios. Each service agencymay feel a strong sense ofdedication to its own uniquefunction, but each runs the risk ofcriticism and funding difficulties ifit does not synchronize with othergovernmental agencies.The best scenario is for the entirecommunity and its infrastructureto be planned cooperatively.This challenges managersto simultaneously integratecommunity improvements tocomplement overall communitydevelopment and make efficientuse of financial resources.

The PlanAnchorage 2020 - AnchorageBowl Comprehensive Plan providesguidance and direction to landusage patterns and physicaldevelopment in the AnchorageBowl. The Park, Natural Resource,and Recreation Facility Planfocuses on the basic needs ofparks within the Anchorage Bowl,to provide for and reserve spacefor a range of leisure activities,and to retain a dimension of thenatural environment as part of theoverall design of the community.This Plan is intended to helpcommunity leaders and residentsmake sound long-range decisionsthat address the land needs,geographic distribution, and spatialrelationships of parks, recreationfacilities, natural resources, andtrails to other land uses within theAnchorage Bowl.The Plan is divided into twosections.Section One provides an overviewof parks, facilities, and the typesof services currently availablein the Anchorage Bowl. Thissection is a summary of thepublic engagement process andresearch conducted over the lasttwo years, which were presentedin eight discussion papers.(These are available throughthe Municipality of Anchorage’sPlanning Department or Parks andRecreation Department.)Section Two provides the policies,goals, objectives, and frameworkfor plan implementation.The Plan has several keycomponents that are presentednext and in more detail furtheralong in the document. Theseinclude a revised Park ClassificationSystem, which organizes parks,natural resource areas, andrecreation facilities into five classes.It includes a Level-of-Service (LOS)Model that provides a measurablemethod to determine how wellparks and facilities are distributedthroughout the Bowl. It includesa Core Service Model to provideguidance in establishing programsthrough an activity-basedaccounting system. It outlinesan ongoing public engagementprocess to monitor programacceptance and determineappropriate levels of developmentfor future updates. Finally, thePlan provides for an annualreview that is linked to the CapitalImprovement Program (CIP)process. It suggests the need for amore complete update as requiredrelative to population increasesor changes in recreational usepatterns and trends every three tofive years.Facilities, Historic/Cultural/SocialSites, and Indoor RecreationFacilities.Park Classification System Trails and Connectors:These provide non-motorized linksbetween residential areas, parks,and schools. This classificationconsists of trails, greenbelts, andlinear parks and includes a mixof hard- and soft-surface trails.Maintenance of these areasis dependent on the type oftrail and design standard. Trailsand connector administration isimplemented primarily throughAnchorage’s Areawide Trails Plan.Parks today serve a multitude ofuses for both passive and activerecreation for people of all ages.The park system is composed ofproperties that vary in size, function,service area, and development.Anchorage’s parks, naturalresource areas, greenbelts, trails,and access to thousands of acresof wilderness give form to the city.In return, parks add identity toneighborhoods, increase propertyvalues, and provide a transitionbetween nature and urbandevelopment. The Plan containsrecommendations for a revisedclassification system consisting offive elements described brieflybelow: Neighborhood Use Areas:These are close-to-home recreationareas that serve one neighborhoodas a focal point for residents andinclude areas for informal play andfamily and community building. Community Use Areas:Community parks are larger in sizeand serve a broader purpose thanneighborhood parks. The focus ison meeting the recreation needs ofseveral neighborhoods or a largesection of the community. Natural Resource Use Areas:These areas are lands set asidefor preservation of significantnatural resources, remnantlandscapes, natural or wildlifehabitats, open space, and visualaesthetics or buffering. NaturalResource Use areas are dividedinto three categories: Preservation,Conservation, and Reserve forfuture use.A summary follows of the existingmunicipal parks (in 2004) andnatural resources by type:NeighborhoodUse Areas238 acresCommunityUse Areas343 acresSpecialUse Areas1,337 acresNatural ResourceUse Areas8,911 acresTotal10,829 acres Special Use Areas:This classification covers a broadrange of parks and recreationfacilities that provide a singlespecialized use such as anequestrian center, a golf course,a sports park, an indoor recreationcenter, or a botanical garden.Special uses generally fall into threecategories: Outdoor Recreationxi

Standards and LOSParkland need is primarily basedupon a series of standards or Levelof-Service (LOS) models. Standardsfor parks were developed by theNational Recreation and ParkAssociation (NRPA) and adoptedby the Municipality in the 1980s.The Municipality of Anchoragehas revised their LOS standardsas part of this plan update toreflect the current methodologyrecommended by the NRPA. Theanalysis and projections of futureparkland needs are based uponthese standards.The Anchorage Bowl LOS standardsare a set of recommendationscontaining a minimum and adesired LOS standard for eachpark use classification and facilitytype by geographic area andpopulation. The standards areguidelines for the Parks andRecreation Department to planand build required parks andrecreation facilities. These canbe found in Chapter 7 and inAppendix B and are expressedin acres of park type per 1,000population or number of facilitiesper 10,000 population.It is important to rememberthat park standards are basedon a variety of methodologies,which are mostly subjective innature. The application of LOSstandards does not carry municipalregulatory status, nor should thesebe considered as cast-in-stonerequirements. Rather, the standardsshould be considered dynamicguidelines to be used as a startingpoint to help the Municipalitydetermine a fair and equitabledistribution of facilities throughoutthe community.Because the application of theseLOS standards will be directlyimpacted by the community’sland supply, tax base, andfunding commitments, as wellas recreational demand, theremust be a reasonable amount offlexibility built into the process. Arange between the minimum leveland preferred level of services isxiiprovided in the plan to allow thisflexibility in the planning processbased on budget constraints,limitations on resources, orchanging community preferencesover time.Ultimately, Anchorage mustreach a consensus on how muchparkland, natural resources, andrecreation facilities will be requiredto maintain the desired quality oflife for the community.Core Service ModelEstablishing and defining coreservices is essential to any solidparks and recreation system.Services can be categorizedbased on general definitions withthe understanding that flexibilityis necessary depending on theage and ability of the user groups,ability to pay, and the currentfinancial situation of the community(willingness to pay).The first step for the AnchorageBowl is to adopt a “Core” ServicesModel that is outlined in thePlan. The Anchorage Parks andRecreation Department shouldidentify basic services and thenestablish an activity-based costingsystem that accurately reflectsthe actual cost of each of theseservices. A fee policy should beestablished for each categoryof services based on the costof providing that service andthe percentage of cost to berecovered.Purpose of PolicyThe public policy section (Chapter6) is one of the most importantcomponents of the Plan. Itestablishes the direction that theParks and Recreation Departmentshould take over the next 20 years.This is presented in the form of avision and mission statement forthe department, followed by eightstrategies or core values to guidethe plan implementation. Thesecore values include:

Improve Maintenance andStewardship of What We Have Private-Public Partnership Parks as CommunityBuilding Blocks Parks as Economic Engines Balanced Services & Facilitiesfor a Diverse Community Access and Connections Stewardship of NaturalResources Creating a Strong Parks andRecreation OrganizationThese strategies provide theoverall long-term guidance tothe department. Each strategyhas a set of policies, goals, longterm objectives, and short-termactions necessary to successfullyimplement the Plan. These areintended to supplement the goalsand policies of Anchorage 2020and the Areawide Trails Plan.Parks Plan and GovernanceGovernance is a frameworkwithin which the policy-makingbody makes decisions about thefuture of an organization. Ideally,fundamental decisions about theorganization’s future should bepolicy-driven. Such policies needto reflect what all of thestakeholders connected with theorganization believe in, what theybelieve the organization stands for,and what it values.and staff activity depend upon acommonly held set of values andperspectives developed from eithera strategic planning process or bydefault.While the essence of governancelies in policy-making, manyboards or policy-making bodiestypically are not involved increating the right types of policy.What is needed is not the narrowpolicy of specific actions andprocedures; it is the broad policythat describes the essence of whatan organization believes, standsfor, and values. These values andperspectives then will form the baseof the more specific, mechanical,and visible aspects on which theorganization is based. The broadpolicy determines the directionof an organization’s effort, givesguidance, and allows for effectivemanagement control.The most important cornerstone ofgood governance is a vision thatexplicitly contains and addressesthe fundamental values of theorganization. Focus on visionencourages long-term thinkingby the governing authority that,in turn, enables the agency torespond in a proactive manor.The organization’s mission, goals,and objectives must complementthe vision and help to ensureits implementation. Likewise,all aspects of the organization(including staff deployment, writtenprocedures, operational plans,budgets, training plans, and facilityand program development) shouldreflect the vision.Values are beliefs in right andwrong. They determine what isacceptable and unacceptable,what is ethical and what is not. Aswith individuals, the values andperspectives of organizations willconsciously or subconsciouslydetermine the behaviors andchoices made by those associatedwith the organization in the faceof needed change. In this sense,policy is fundamentally importantto the organization’s governance.Excellence in governance beginswith the recognition that all boardxiii

Plan ImplementationThe information presented in thePlan creates a set of tools fordetermining the future park andrecreation needs of the AnchorageBowl parks and recreation system.The needs are presented in theform of an LOS guideline. Therecommended LOS can becompared to the current inventoryfor each park type and facility todetermine if the current LOS meetsor exceeds the standard or if thereis a deficit. If a deficit exists, thecommunity can prioritize fundingto create or enhance parks andfacilities to relieve the deficit beforedeveloping additional parks orfacilities in other areas. This is anongoing interactive and systematicprocess that must include soundpublic involvement, accuratemeasurements of existing facilities,realistic appraisal of the financialcapabilities, and fair and honestleadership.Below is an outline of the stepsnecessary to update the planannually for the CIP process. Nosingle step should be left out,nor should any single step beconsidered the only appropriatesource of information to base adecision on. In the end, it mustalso be recognized that it is animperfect system that will, bynecessity, require compromise andtrade-offs to achieve a balancedand equitable system of parks,natural resources, and recreationfacilities for the entire community.Step OneAnnual Update of Park Inventorydistrict subareas as outlined inthe Plan. Annual updates can bebased on housing starts, buildingpermits, or other methods thatprovide a reasonable accuratereflection of the population foreach area. Calculate the current LOS forthe Bowl and the five parkdistricts using the inventory andpopulation update and establisha range of annual needs betweenthe minimum and desired LOSprovided.Step FourEvaluate Annual Income,Expenditures and Core ServicesPrepare annual budget thatprovides an accurate accountingof programs and services using theactivity-based cost accountingmethodology. Update the CoreService model through a blueribbon panel of park staff andcommunity leaders. Determineavailable funding for the next fiscalyear and develop target budget.The Parks and RecreationDepartment shall conduct a varietyof public involvement processeseach year to help determinepublic use, attitudes, and demandfor future development. This caninclude a number of steps butshould include some form of eachof the following:Participation: review annualrates of participation at thoserecreational activities thatpermit easy records to bekept. This includes organizedsporting events, programs andclasses, rentals, and majorfacilities.Step TwoAnnual Update of Population Annual Survey: conduct anannual survey to determinepublic perceptions ofthe department, levels ofparticipation in a variety ofactivities and park visits, desireBenchmark Update:maintain contact withbenchmark cities and sharepertinent data on an annualbasis.Community Input: Eachpark district should workwith community councils,Anchorage School District,and local user groupsand forward annual parkbudget adjustments andCIP recommendations tothe Parks and RecreationCommission on an annualbasis.Step SixEvaluate LOS with PublicInvolvementCompare the range of LOS withcurrent public involvement findingsand the financial ability of thedepartment to fund programs andnew development. This shouldinclude the following steps: Adjust the LOS range andcalculate the park needs forthe next fiscal year using thetables found in Appendix C. Community Applicationfor CIP: Review annualapplications from CommunityCouncils, user groups, andindividuals for considerationon the CIP list. (See AppendixC for sample form.) Score the proposed CIP usingthe above information usingthe forms found in AppendixC. The scoring process shouldbegin at the five park districtsubareas for the first round toidentify local needs. Thesescore sheets should then bereviewed by park staff andforwarded to a park needscommittee consisting ofrepresentation from the Parksand Recreation Commission,Parks and RecreationDepartment staff, andcommunity representativesfrom the five park districts.Step FiveConduct Public Involvement xiv Step ThreeIdentify Park NeedsThe Parks and RecreationDepartment shall conduct anannual update of the physicalinventory of parks and facilities. Thisshould list all new development,acquisition, or disposal of parklandthat has occurred during the pastyear.The Planning Department shallprovide adjusted populationnumbers for each of the five parkfor new development, andwillingness to pay.

Once the final project scoringis complete and projectshave been ranked, the finalstep is to establish a balancebetween projected costs andfunding levels for both the CIPand the operating budget.The Parks and RecreationDepartment will thenadminister an annual workprogram, budget, and CIP.Park Plan MapsMap UseThe Anchorage Bowl Park, NaturalResource, and Recreation FacilityPlan maps are intended for generalreference and planning purposesonly.Except for actual school sites,these maps are not intended torepresent specific locations ofnew park parcels. For areas withknown deficiencies in the variouspark classification categories,the Municipality would targetacquisition of new sites within theboundaries of the highlightedyellow circles (for Maps 2 & 3), andat the identified school sites (Maps2, 3, & 4). These areas of deficiencyare defined by and based onstandards within the various parkclassifications.For proposed Natural ResourcePreservation and Conservation sites(Map 6), it is the direction of thisPlan for the Municipality and otherland-managing agencies to pursueappropriate protection

BBowl Park, Natural Resource, owl Park, Natural Resource, aand Recreation Facility Plan is nd Recreation Facility Plan to provide a model for applying a systematic approach to the planning of parks, recreation, and natural use areas. The model ensures that a fair and equitable balance of parks and facilities are provided to all residents. The .