November 30, 2007

Greenprint 2008 update discussed at D8CRT meeting

By Bonnie Mace
Special to the Times

City officials are currently updating the Greenprint strategic plan, which seeks to create a more livable city through high-quality parks, recreational facilities and programs. As part of the city’s community outreach, officials from the Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services solicited feedback from about 50 residents at the Nov. 13 meeting of the District 8 Community Round Table.

“We want to get input from the community so that we can see where the city should be spending its money in terms of residents’ priorities,” explained Rafael Gomez, project manager for the Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services Department.

According to Gomez, PRNS officials want to ask the community for their feedback on several questions:

What are the most important priorities for programs, parks, facilities and services?

What is the best way to provide programs and services to the community?

Would you support a city-wide assessment to underwrite operational costs associated with community centers, aquatics programs, sports and summer camps?

Would you support a city-wide assessment to underwrite maintenance costs associated with ground maintenance for parks, community centers, and libraries?

To understand what the community wants, Gomez asked those attending the D8CRT meeting to vote for their priorities by placing colored dots on large wall charts listing many choices. D8CRT members rotated among four stations, which focused on potential land acquisitions in District 8, recreation programs and services, park amenities and facilities, and city-wide/regional parks, trails and recreational facilities.

Before voting, the community had the opportunity to offer additional recommendations to the PRNS officials. D8CRT members asked about the future funding for the Thompson Creek Trail, and about the possibility of creating more parks in the northern and southern ends of the district.

Audience members also recommended recreational services such as ping pong and badminton classes, and several members of Boy Scout Troop 264 asked for more outdoor basketball courts for teenagers.

Margaret Shepperson, parent of one of the Boy Scouts, agreed that teenagers need more recreational services in our district. “There are so few things for them to do in terms of community activities,” she said.

District 8 resident Arvind Kumar suggested a botanical garden or an arboretum for our area. “It is important to educate and to entertain the community in terms of recreational services. There are many people in our neighborhood who would enjoy nature guided walks, bird watching, or botanical gardens, all of which have an instructional and recreational component,” he said.

In addition to suggestions for expansion of parks and recreational services in District 8 and the city as a whole, several D8CRT members cautioned the PRNS officials about the problem of promising too much in a situation where city funds are limited.

“This is a nice wish list, but we need to look at the financial capacity of the city. How can we prioritize this list in terms of San Jose’s financial capacity?” asked District 8 resident Lan Nguyen.

PRNS officials will use the data acquired during the community meetings to formulate a city-wide final document that will be completed in spring 2008. The document will be available on-line for public review and comment. A city-wide community meeting will be held in the spring to review and comment on the document.

If you are interested in more information concerning the Greenprint Update, please visit the PRNS website at: www.sjparks.org/greenprint. There is an on-line survey for residents who cannot attend the community meetings.

The next District 8 Community Round Table meeting will be held on Dec. 11, at the Evergreen Branch Library, from 6:30-9 p.m. Note the earlier start time for a potluck celebration and elections to follow. Please bring a dish to share. For more details on the D8CRT, visit the Yahoo User Group site at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/D8C_RoundTable/

Bonnie Mace is a D8CRT officer.