Locust encourages residents to complete survey about parks and recreation master plan

Published 3:31 pm Friday, March 10, 2023

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Locust Parks and Recreation is asking residents to complete a community survey to ensure their voices are heard about the types of programs and activities they would like to see.

The input will help in the crafting of a new master plan, which will identify the current state of the department facilities and, through public engagement, determine future needs.

“We encourage residents to complete the survey because it’s going to be really vital to the Parks and Recreation master plan,” Parks and Recreation director Emily Jones told Locust City Council during its meeting Thursday night. The plan will “help us identity want those needs are, what do residents want to see in Locust and how are they using our current facilities.”

Councilwoman Mandy Watson, who provides monthly parks and recreation updates, also encouraged people to complete the survey.

The city council approved Benesch, a professional services firm based in Charlotte, to help the city craft the master plan in December.

Bensech has toured and assessed the city’s current facilities, Jones said, and has been comparing them to what is offered in similar-size municipalities in the area.

The plan — which will help guide the city’s actions over the next decade, including which projects to prioritize — will focus on parks and programs, but may also include greenways and bicycle and pedestrian routes depending upon citizen input.

Jones told Council she hopes for the plan to be completed in June and presented before Council for approval in July.

About Chris Miller

Chris Miller has been with the SNAP since January 2019. He is a graduate of NC State and received his Master's in Journalism from the University of Maryland. He previously wrote for the Capital News Service in Annapolis, where many of his stories on immigration and culture were published in national papers via the AP wire.

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