Consultants outline 12‑month parks master plan; feasibility study to examine a possible community center

Consultants leading Wellington’s parks master plan told the Parks and Recreation advisory board on May 14 that the study will run about 12 months and include a separate community‑center feasibility analysis.

“We want it to be collaborative,” Ryan Hegernis said. “As Billy said, I want this to be interactive. So if you’re not asking me questions, I’ll be asking you questions, so be prepared.” Hegernis identified himself as a senior consultant with Barry Dunn, the prime consultant for the project team.

The team said the planning process will combine public engagement, a statistically valid community survey, a facilities gap analysis and several technical tools including visitation analysis from Placer AI and benchmarking using National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) metrics and ESRI demographic data. Hegernis said the project is targeting completion and entry into implementation by the end of the third quarter of next year.

Why it matters: the plan will set park priorities, inform grant applications and provide implementation guidance and financial estimates that the town and trustees can use to budget capital and program spending.

Key details and process steps

- The consultants will request existing plans, brand standards, maps and GIS shapefiles from town staff as an initial data request. (source: Ryan Hegernis) - Community engagement will include pop‑up events, an online engagement platform with an idea wall and a statistically valid survey to measure resident preferences with confidence intervals. (source: Ryan Hegernis) - The consultants will perform a gap and level‑of‑service analysis to map amenities, condition and walking‑accessibility (their work will assess whether residents can reach parks within about a 10‑minute walk, not merely a half‑mile radius). (source: Ryan Hegernis) - The community‑center feasibility piece will develop facility‑size options, programming mixes, construction cost estimates and operational cost‑recovery projections to help the town decide whether, when and at what scale a center might be built. (source: Ryan Hegernis)

Board members stressed implementation and local context. John Evans, chair of the advisory board, said he wants a plan that “serves as a guiding principle moving forward.” Aaron McConnell, a board member, urged that the plan be a practical “filter” for future projects. Trustee Rebecca Daley said parks “are a connector that brings people together,” and she asked the team to prioritize community uses that build social ties.

Data and privacy

Hegernis described Placer AI as a source of anonymized, aggregated mobility data gathered from devices whose owners have enabled location permissions in third‑party apps. He said the consultants receive only aggregated visitation patterns and do not have access to individual identities.

Next steps and implementation

The consultants said they will deliver an implementation workshop near the end of the process to translate the plan into near‑term actions, budgeting priorities and grant‑ready project packages. Hegernis asked the advisory board for help publicizing engagement events and for participation in visioning and review workshops.

Ending

The board did not take a formal vote on the master plan during the meeting; the presentation served as a kickoff and request for data and engagement support from the board and staff. The consultant team will return with outreach materials and a timeline as work proceeds.