Following multiple in-person and online engagement opportunities last summer and fall, Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) announced additional feedback workshops and a survey for Recreate Asheville: Shaping Our City’s Parks, a community-driven comprehensive plan to guide the City of Asheville’s parks and recreation decisions for the next 10-15 years.
During the City of Asheville’s Environment and Safety Committee meeting on February 27, APR shared an update on the months-long planning process and a summary of information learned during a community needs assessment period that included a statistically valid survey mailed to homes throughout the city, an online survey, in-person workshops and engagement events, focus group meetings, and stakeholder discussions.
- View presentation on the City of Asheville’s YouTube channel
- View slides from the presentation in PDF format
Upcoming Feedback Opportunities
- March 27-April 15
- Online survey available on the City of Asheville’s virtual engagement hub
- Use this direct link at that time: https://publicinput.com/recreateasheville
- March 27 at 6 p.m.
- Virtual community meeting with a presentation followed by town hall-style comment period
- Use this direct link at that time: https://publicinput.com/recreateasheville
- March 28 from 7-11 a.m.
- Stephens-Lee Community Center on 30 George Washington Carver Avenue
- Drop-in open house community meeting with the opportunity to stay as little or as long as your schedule allows to participate in hands-on budgeting activities and speak directly with City of Asheville staff
- Additional opportunities in April will be announced on the Recreate Asheville website as they are confirmed.
- APR team members are also happy to attend virtual or in-person meetings of Asheville’s neighborhood organizations to discuss the plan in greater detail.
What happens next?
Feedback during this phase will be incorporated with feedback from the previous community needs assessment period to develop a strategic action plan. Community members then have an additional period (tentatively scheduled from May 20-June 2) to review and comment on the drafted plan.
What is Recreate Asheville: Shaping Our City’s Parks?
Recreate Asheville: Shaping Our City’s Parks is a community-built comprehensive plan to guide long-range planning, address service gaps, and identify opportunities for improvements. It is a visionary document that sets the values and goals for systemwide investments and a framework to guide future investments in recreation programs and spaces.
It is not an operations model or financial budget, though it is a method to inform capital expenditures. The Recreate Asheville plan does not contain detailed design proposals for specific neighborhoods, parks, or facilities.
Asheville Parks & Recreation
With its oldest parks dating to the 1890s, Asheville Parks & Recreation manages a unique collection of more than 65 public parks, playgrounds, and open spaces throughout the city in a system that also includes full-complex recreation centers, swimming pools, Riverside Cemetery, sports fields and courts, and community centers that offer a variety of wellness-, education-, and culture-related programs for Ashevillians of all ages. With 10 miles of paved greenways and numerous natural surface trails, its complete portfolio acts as the foundation of a vibrant hub for the people of Asheville to connect with their neighbors and explore the natural beauty of a livable and walkable city.
Driven by the promise that Asheville is a better and safer place when everyone from infants to retirees has the opportunity to be supported, healthy, and successful, Asheville Parks & Recreation was the first nationally-accredited municipal recreation department in the United States. For latest updates, sign up for Asheville Parks & Recreation’s monthly newsletter, follow the department on Facebook (@aprca) and Instagram (@ashevilleparksandrecreation), or visit www.ashevillenc.gov/parks.