Parks for All
PARC, the Parks and Recreation Coalition, was formed after the November 9th City Council meeting after a narrow 5-4 vote to delay adoption of the new Parks Master Plan. PARC consists of retired city and park planning professionals, park landscape architects, and concerned citizens from across San Diego.
PARC has presented to North Park Planning Group and Uptown Planners, and both groups have adopted resolutions supporting improvements it is recommending. PARC has also had meetings with all of the City Councilmembers and leaders in the city administration. UHCA and the University Heights Park, Recreation, and Open Space Advisory Group are members of PARC, and invited former University Heights resident and one of PARC’s leaders Susan Baldwin to update UHCA at our February 4th meeting.
Making the Parks Master Plan Better
Susan Baldwin, Parks and Recreation Coalition
PARC is advocating for a better Parks Master Plan- “Parks for All.” This is the first Parks Master Plan in over 50 years, and we strongly believe more time and input are needed before embarking on such a monumental change in how we build, maintain, and fund parks.
We appreciate the efforts by the City to make equitable investments into our park system, and we advocate keeping the good elements that are in the current draft: promoting a parks system that is relevant, accessible, iconic, sustainable and equitable; meeting the changing needs and priorities of current and future residents; and addressing the long-standing inequities that exist in our current parks system.
PARC has identified five key issues we believe need to be addressed before the Parks Master Plan, General Plan Recreation Element, and Citywide Park Development Impact Fee are approved.
Public engagement. While the city held many meetings for input into the Parks Master Plan, after the Draft Plan was released, meetings were not held with key stakeholders like the community planning groups and community recreational groups. Since this Plan will be the basis for any bond measures on future ballots, it’s critical is that public support is built now. We need to love this Plan as much as we love our parks!
More parkland for our growing city. One of the biggest issues is the elimination of the current land standard of 2.8 acres per 1,000 people - just when we’re increasing housing density and incentivizing smaller units. PARC supports the need for flexibility for communities to add recreational amenities into parks, but there should still be an easily understandable land standard. More people need more parks, not just more amenities added into existing parks. As with affordable housing goals, just because we can’t meet them doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have them. We are advocating to retain the current 2.8 acre land standard, including minimum protections for passive recreation in parks, and to increase the minimum funding from development fees (10 percent was proposed on Nov. 9) for parkland acquisition.
Funding for parks and addressing inequities Funding. We all know there’s not enough and PARC is suggesting additional sources of funding. We believe that there are other potential additional sources of funding to support our park system: consideration of non-residential park Development Impact Fees and Community Benefit Zoning. Also, a Prioritization Framework will direct how the new Citywide Park Fee will be allocated, however it has not been released. It should be so we can see how the goals of addressing our inequitable park system will be accomplished. We believe that any decision on changing funding and allocating that funding must be built on transparency.
Confusing, complicated points system devalues land acquisition. The points system being proposed is complicated and as the first such approach being tried by any city, needs more discussion and changes. PARC examined some of the points in the proposed system and saw that a sign would have the same “value” as one acre of parkland! We strongly advocate that land and recreational amenity points be separated, and to ensure that amenities are included based on what the communities are asking for – not what developers want to include to discount their impact fees.
Other issues: commercialization, historic resources, habitat protection, tree canopies, and design review There are other issues in the draft Plan that we are concerned about: commercialization in public parks, clear identification of historic resources and cultural landscapes, strengthening protection of both tree canopy and Multiple Species Conservation Program, and ensuring that design and design review are done with community input.
We’re asking all San Diegans to support the vision of Parks for All by reaching out to the Mayor and your Councilmember and ask that they support the changes that PARC is advocating for. You can find a sample letter and contact information for our elected officials below.
Working together, we believe that we can create a Parks Master Plan that will serve our needs today and into the future.
Make Your Voice Heard!
sample letter/email
Dear Mayor Gloria and Councilmember Whitburn:
I am a resident of University Heights. I am writing in support of the Park and Recreation Coalition’s efforts to help improve the Parks Master Plan.
As a resident in a community that is already severely under-parked, I believe that it is critical that we plan for and build more park space to meet our growing needs. WIth thousands of new housing units being built in our increasingly dense neighborhood, parks will be even more important.
Please review the recommendations that PARC has made and support those changes. We, our children, and future generations are counting on us to make the best decisions for a better future.
With regards,
Send your comments to:
Mayor Todd Gloria
202 C Street, 11th Floor
San Diego, CA 92101
MayorToddGloria@sandiego.gov
Council President Pro Tem Stephen Whitburn
202 C Street, 10th Floor
San Diego, CA 92101
StephenWhitburn@sandiego.gov