Park Board Goals For 2010
The following article by Cristof Traudes, which was published in the May 3, 2010 edition of the Southwest Journal, lists the commissioners' goals for 2010 as decided upon at the April 14 Park Board meeting:
PARK BOARD GOALS FOR 2010
It may already be the middle of spring, but the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board recently adopted its formal list of goals for 2010.
The six-part document spreads itself fairly equally between political and parks and recreation ideas. There’s no doubt, though, that the board is wary of going down the same road as other cities’ parks departments, where neighborhood centers are being closed due to budget cuts. While St. Paul has been forced to slash its number of recreation centers, the Minneapolis Park Board’s No. 1 goal this year is to increase the quality of amenities, services and programs in neighborhood parks.
The commissioners’ No. 2 goal is to organize a citywide, co-sponsored greening event, while goal No. 3 is to increase community engagement.
No. 4 on the list is to host a successful national parks conference — the National Recreation and Park Association will be here in October — and successfully hire a new superintendent.
The board also reiterated its interest in gaining more control over its finances. Having been weeding itself off of local-government aid for the past few years in anticipation of state budget cuts, the board wants to up its budget’s non-property tax-based revenue by 5 percent.
Its sixth and final goal shows a special interest in boosting the parks system’s political standing. A year after talk of the board’s elimination dominated local politics discussions, commissioners have made it a distinct goal to improve their relationship with other governmental bodies while strengthening their own system’s independence.