To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
From: Kristin Zagurski, Assistant Town Manager
Jeff Brauer, Parks and Recreation Director
Title
Update: Planned Meadows Park Naming Process
Body
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Executive Summary
The Town needs a name for its upcoming park in The Meadows, near Aspen View Academy. Public feedback is being solicited on the topic, and staff has outlined a process for bringing a park name to Council for consideration. The purpose of this item is to update Council on the planned process in order to obtain any feedback before continuing forward.
Notification and Outreach Efforts
A communications plan is being carried out to involve the public in the park-naming process. It includes outreach on the Town’s website, social media channels, LED signs and email and printed newsletters. Outreach launched in mid-July, and input is being accepted through August 31. As of mid-August, more than 680 submissions had been received to an online feedback form on the topic.
History of Past Town Council, Boards & Commissions, or Other Discussions
Town Council in 2006 adopted a policy on naming Town facilities. Another Council then updated that policy in 2013, and that version is the current version (Attachment A).
Discussion
Staff has outlined a process for following the Council-adopted naming policy in determining the name of the upcoming park in The Meadows. The policy provides that the goal for selecting names shall primarily be fostering a sense of community and small-town character. This includes names that heighten awareness of Town history; celebrate the natural environment; call attention to points of pride in the community; and/or call attention to people, events and geography that have shaped the Town.
The policy calls for the Town Manager and/or designee - in this case, the Assistant Town Manager and Parks and Recreation Director - to chair a staff committee to review nominations received and select those for further consideration and/or recommendation. In addition to the Town Manager’s two designees, staff proposes that the Parks Planning and Construction Manager, who is project manager for the park, be part of this process. The group’s review would be anticipated to occur the week of September 3 or 10.
Per the policy, the staff committee is then to submit a report to the board or commission most closely involved with this facility, in this case, the Parks and Recreation Commission. Staff plans for that commission to consider the staff committee’s report and take any additional public input before making a recommendation for Council on the park’s name at its September 19 meeting.
The Parks and Recreation Commission’s nomination, then, would be submitted to Town Council for final action - a resolution establishing the park’s name, and the reasons for such - at Council’s October 2 meeting.
Following that action, staff will work to implement the park’s name as approved by Council.
To reiterate the above, here is the proposed schedule at a glance:
Mid-July-August 31: Public submits naming feedback at CRgov.com/futureparks
September 3-14: Staff Committee of Assistant Town Manager, Parks and Recreation Director and Parks Planning and Construction Manager reviews nominations and selects those for further consideration
September 19: Parks and Recreation Commission reviews staff committee’s report, takes public feedback and recommends a name to Town Council
October 2: Town Council considers a resolution establishing the park’s name and the reasons for such
Staff Recommendation
Staff’s recommended process for establishing the name for the upcoming park in The Meadows is outlined in this memo.
Proposed Action
No formal Council action is requested at this time. Staff welcomes any feedback Council has regarding the planned process.
Attachments
Attachment A: Resolution 2013-56: A Resolution Adopting an Amended Town of Castle Rock Facility Naming Policy