To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
From: Jeff Brauer, Interim Director of Parks and Recreation
Title
Discussion/Direction: Festival Park Redesign
Body
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Executive Summary
The purpose of this agenda item is to request Town Council direction for the Festival Park redesign project. This discussion will focus on the park amenities, arrangement of features, function of the design, material selection and interface with surrounding properties. This presentation will also address Festival Park event compatibility and capacity analysis as previously requested by Town Council.
An overview of implementation strategies and possible funding options will be briefly discussed to provide Town Council with an understanding of the scope of this project and to provide a basis for decision making. A detailed discussion of capital funding and operational costs will be offered at a later date based upon Town Council direction. The consultant, Design Workshop Inc., will be giving the presentation and facilitating the discussion.
The redesign of Festival Park was developed through a public process involving community workshops, vision sessions and interactive presentations over several months. The design consultant also worked with the Downtown Development Authority, the Downtown Merchants Association, and individual property owners to explore design ideas and to address concerns.
The Castle Rock community has acknowledged the importance of the Town Strategic Initiatives and the impact to quality of life in Castle Rock as demonstrated through the 2015 Community Survey results. The downtown celebrations at Festival Park have been a significant contributor to small town character and quality of life definition for residents.
A Preliminary Project Application filed with the Development Services Enterprise has identified that the Festival Park property is zoned Business Commercial District, the property resides in the Downtown Overlay District and the property has a multiple lot configuration. Before the project can move forward, the property requires vacation of an alley, utility relocations, a floodplain development permit, a floodplain modification study and a transportation impact study.
Once design direction is given by Town Council, the next step is to consider funding for the administrative and planning work detailed above and for the development of construction drawings and technical specifications for the project. Construction drawings are necessary so that the project may be competitively bid on the open market. The planning studies and construction drawings may be accomplished concurrently. Design Workshop has included a cost estimate for the development of construction drawings, estimated at just under $400,000. This estimate is within standards for professional services.
This project will include administrative review by the Town of Castle Rock, and permitting from other agencies, so the project schedule is still dynamic. Town Council may consider this project as a whole, or in two phases as shown in Attachment A.
There is $1.2 million available in the General Fund Downtown Projects line item that have been designated for “downtown projects”. A portion of the $1.2 million could be utilized for the planning studies and construction drawings and is represented as $500,000 in Table 1 below as General Fund DDA TIF -From $1.2 million.
The Festival Park project is estimated around $5 million dollars. A sample funding scenario is shown below with a combination of funding sources. This project is eligible to be funded with an established TIF sales and property tax funding mechanism which was established in 2008 with the creation of the Downtown Development Authority. The funding for the design is currently available from the General Fund Downtown Projects unobligated reserves line item and will be reimbursed for all expenditures.
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Sample - Festival Park Funding Options |
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Table 1 |
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Estimated Project Cost |
5,000,000 |
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Funding Sources: |
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Conservation Trust (Butterfield Park defer) |
500,000 |
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Conservation Trust (Shareback - 2015 Available) |
60,000 |
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Conservation Trust (2016 - at 6 months) |
390,000 |
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DDA TIF Fund debt capacity |
2,500,000 |
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General Fund DDA TIF - From $1.2M |
500,000 |
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Parks & Recreation Capital Fund - end of 2016 |
300,000 |
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General Long Term Planning Fund |
500,000 |
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Stormwater contribution |
250,000 |
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Total Funding Sources |
5,000,000 |
Notification and Outreach Efforts
The Festival Park Redesign project is a culmination of a six month design process that included a great deal of public interaction including, but not limited to the following:
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• May 7, 2015 |
Community Workshop and Vision Session |
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• June 4, 2015 |
Community Workshop |
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• June 6, 2015 |
Interactive Presentation at Starlight Movie Night |
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• June 25, 2015 |
Progress Presentation to DDA and DMA |
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• July 3, 2015 |
Interactive Presentation at Starlight Movie Night |
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• July 14, 2015 |
Council Workshop Study Session |
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• September 3, 2015 |
Progress Presentation to DDA and DMA |
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• September 5, 2015 |
Interactive Presentation at Starlight Movie Night |
Discussion
Town Council has established economic development as a priority in Castle Rock as part of its Strategic Plan and Comprehensive Plan. Town Council, Castle Rock Economic Development, Downtown Development Authority, Downtown Alliance and the Downtown Merchants Association have partnered to explore the conceptual master plan design options of expanding Festival Park for the purpose of hosting community events and to attract downtown activities and retail business.
The working subcommittee and the Consultant have been very busy over the past several months engaging business owners and interested citizens with regards to the Festival Park redesign project. There is a lot of excitement from all about the possibility of expanding and improving the park.
The summary of all the meetings and feedback to date can be found in the Project Book Two, which is included as Attachment A.
The design concept includes partial closure of Second Street to increase the size of the park and provide for better pedestrian access. The proposed closure will eliminate some parking spaces within the immediate area.
Providing restrooms in the Downtown area is an ongoing topic of discussion for the past several years. The consensus is that public restrooms are a fundamental requirement for the success of the overall vision of Downtown but the expense and location has been a challenge. Restroom locations and architectural options are included in the plan.
The Downtown Master Plan anticipates significant growth in residential development and employment. The plan supports the attraction of individuals living and working in the downtown area by creating an environment where people want to work and live in a unique urban center. Great places like Festival Park are essential for the health and prosperity of such urban centers. A safe and clean urban park that serves a variety of people, Festival Park will boost the vitality of adjacent businesses and promote an active civic life as a public gathering place for work and respite.
Budget Impact
An overview of implementation strategies and possible funding options was shown in Table 1 and will be briefly discussed to provide Town Council with an understanding of the scope of this project and to provide a basis for decision making. A detailed discussion of capital funding and operational costs will be offered at a later date based upon Town Council direction.
Staff Recommendation
Staff is requesting Town Council’s direction on the preliminary design plan and guidance for staff to return with a detailed financial plan and schedule for implementation.
Attachments
Attachment A Festival Park Design Book Two