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Community Services presents year‑end report highlighting national recognition and local projects
Summary
County Community Services reported a year of program expansion, national recognition as an NRPA gold‑medal finalist, ADA upgrades, and a slate of upcoming construction and accessibility projects.
Los Alamos County’s Community Services Department presented a year‑end report to the Art and Public Places Board outlining program growth, national recognition and capital projects in design or construction.
“This national recognition by our peers validates what we’ve been working toward over the past five years,” the department’s presenter said, describing the department’s selection as a gold‑medal finalist by the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration. The presenter said the department did not win the grand plaque but plans to apply again next year.
The presentation listed accomplishments and metrics the department attributed to the past year: adoption of continuous improvement training, improvements to online registration, consolidation of library part‑time roles into two full‑time positions, and the addition of another certified parks and recreation professional. Staff reported 22 public information sessions and six surveys in the past year; department social media reach across Facebook and Instagram exceeded 119,000 people and Facebook page visits totaled more than 26,000.
Capital and renovation work described in the report included completion of two play‑lot designs, renovations at Sprio Senior and Ben Ryan fields, renovation of two athletic courts (described as requiring 93 truckloads of concrete), installation of a permanent chiller at the ice rink, and near‑term construction for Brewer Arena grandstand and ADA upgrades. Staff said the golf course renovation was substantially complete and that an outdoor classroom at the Mesa Public Library is nearly ready for construction.
On social and health programs, staff noted expansions in mental‑health partnerships, an opioid‑prevention training for the Elks Lodge, a coalition called LAUNCH to expand suicide‑prevention training, and work on a coordinated crisis response plan using sequential intercept modeling. The department also reported 1,800 combined library and recreation events or programs for the year.
Why it matters: The report signals continued investment in county recreation, accessibility upgrades and mental‑health partnerships. Several projects will require future council approvals and construction contracts.
Next steps listed by staff include Brewer Arena grandstand construction, library outdoor classroom build, new playgrounds at 30 Seventh Street and Pinon Park, Phase II athletic‑court renovations, bio‑canyon trailhead upgrades, and a Rose Garden deer fence design and installation.
