Family Fun Day Planning Event - Overall Summary

Key to our planning process was an event we held this past Saturday in the northern half of Russian Jack Springs Park, close to the intersection of Pine and 6th. The intent of this event was to create a hub of activity where community members could drop by, have their children entertained, and provide ways for a multitude of ages and interests to provide ideas and comments related to our planning process. For a number of reasons, evening meetings and other events can sometimes fail to bring out a good cross-section of a community. Daytime events like this that are attractive to families can really provide a space where people can provide their thoughts who might not otherwise be able to comment.

In preparation for this event (and our previous two meetings), at the beginning of July we mailed out 5991 invitations for people to participate in our process. At the request of the community, this meant that we sent something to each address within 1 mile of the project area. To further enhance our desire to reach the community, we translated this mailer and our poster into six languages (Tagalog, Samoan, Korean, Hmong, Laotian and Spanish). We also had a Youth Employment in Parks crew distribute door hangers with the same information to residents surrounding the project area. With posters in as many places as we could put them, engaging the neighborhood churches to help spread the word as well, and having radio announcements... we really hoped for a good turnout on Saturday... and we got it.
There were many ways to give input at north Russian Jack Springs Park on Saturday afternoon – including voting with stickers for photos of favorite activities, creating a model of an ideal playground, and writing thoughts on comments sheets. The following is a summary of the numerous written comment sheets received on Saturday:

Participants’ brainstorming for new things for the park included: a trampoline, a skate park, ping pong tables, air hockey tables, a tire swing, “a very huge park,” paintball facilities, ice skating facilities, a sledding hill, snowfields, lighted ski trails, a real restroom, more garbage cans, an indoor tennis facility, basketball courts, amphitheater, more picnic areas, more play areas, a building similar to Kincaid Chalet, a bike path along Pine that is more similar to the South Russian Jack Springs Park Pine Street bike path, toy trucks, sand box, rope climbing, swings, monkey bars, ball pit, rock climbing walls, meditation garden, rain gardens, community gardens, better signage and arrows for parking lots, fields, and trails, and “a huge destination play area.”

Many visitors emphasized maintenance. The biggest concerns regarding maintenance are the parking situation, and unkempt facilities. Gravel and fill were recommended to even out the parking lot and reduce mud. More trashcans in a variety of locations (including the soccer fields and trails) might reduce litter. The tennis courts and bleachers are damaged and there is graffiti needing removal. In general, the park shows signs of neglect and needs better upkeep.

Along with the ideas for new facilities and noted maintenance issues came a variety of comments and suggestions for the park:

• “(Create a) planned volunteer group for maintenance.”
• “(Put in a) path for people to walk from 6th Avenue to the ball fields
• “Smooth out the soccer field.”
• ““Please put good soil in divets on soccer fields. Every year sand is put in and there’s no way the grass will grow back. I suggest good soil right after the outdoor season (Aug 3rd) this year. That way grass could possibly grow next spring.”
• “Facilities are going unused.”
• “Basketball courts need to be around a managed facility – like a Boys & Girls Club.”
• “Play area should be visible from the street”
• “Make another venue between both softball areas by removing and thinning out trees so people can see from the street that this park is usable for all people.”
• “Building similar to Kincaid Chalet so winter users have a place to congregate. Rent out space for weddings, etc.”
• “Huge destination play area that can be seen from street to draw neighbors into park and find what a jewel we have here”
• “Improve bike/walking trail system and trail lighting needs improvement”
• “The existing pavilion is small and cannot handle large groups, tournaments, and large group gatherings”
• “All the facilities are hidden in view from each other and may be intimidating to those who are worried about security”
• “Covered areas for sport spectators”
• “We don’t let the kids go past the trees or over to the playground because we can’t see them”
• “Rotate soccer field goal areas from year to year – rotate fields – lots of space – should be able to do this and extend field life”
• “Sustainable trails built by YEP (youth employment in parks)”
• “More places to picnic and grill”
• “Big playground for children with a toddler area within it that is partitioned off”
• “Big playground in an open area so parents can see kids, not back hidden away with places for people to hide – include more benches for sitting”
• “Crack down on homeless camps in the park”

Part of our research process included photo sheets illustrating facilities and activities that the community was able to show their preference for and to provide comments on. Groups of images corresponding to current uses and desired uses were provided and preferences were established by a voting process (placing dots on the images). Those that were interested in skate parks were able to comment on what type of features they would like to see should a skate park be developed. Participation was great and we feel as though we achieved a great cross section of the community’s interests and opinions.

(you can click on these graphics - and all graphics in our blog - to enlarge them for easier viewing)
(For more Youth and Children results, see the accompanying blog post for that.)

A concern of some community members is the existing 1979 Master Plan - adherence to it but also a desire to update it. While we are unable to engage in a full Master Plan update, we are using this document as an important guiding tool. There are many parts of it that are still relevant, and so far within the process much of what the community has spoken out about is consistent with this Master Plan. The intent of a Master Plan is to guide a park into the future, and ensure that it sustainably addresses the needs of the community that it serves. Much of a Master Plan can be quantitative, but there are also qualitative aspects that seek to anticipate the unexpected changes that our communities face. What we are seeing through this process so far is that there is a desire to provide additional facilities for youth and children. This is very consistent with the intent and goals of the existing master plan, if not echoing sections of it verbatim.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the event… your input is priceless.

Please see our "related files" link for some of the materials we had available at the event:

• 1979 Russian Jack Springs Park Master Plan
• 1997/2002 Master Plan Graphic Update
• Boards from our previous two meetings

Any comments of your own? Please feel free to comment on this post directly below, or via our comment collector link in the upper right hand corner of our blog page. Please make sure your comments meet our commenting policy as outlined on the right hand side of our blog page.