La Center planning commission reviews draft parks, recreation and open space element

The La Center Planning Commission reviewed the first draft of the parks, recreation and open space element of the 2025 comprehensive plan at its Feb. 11 meeting, discussing inventory updates, tree canopy data, trail connections and policy language tied to the city’s climate resiliency work.

Planning staff emphasized that the parks element was updated using the city’s Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan adopted in 02/2024 and noted roughly 300 community participants in that planning process. Alex, planning staff, said the element draws on that plan and contains an updated inventory of city-owned neighborhood parks (including Heritage Park, Riverside Park and Elmer Soul Park), a special-use category (for sites such as John Pollock Water Trail Park) and open-space inventories for city-owned, private (within-city) and adjacent county/state lands such as Lisonbee Bottoms.

The draft includes a needs assessment and map of acquisition areas labeled a–e. Staff presented the plan’s estimate that, to meet growth through 2045, the city needs 27 community park acres (or the equivalent of one large community park plus eight acres of neighborhood-scale park). The element notes the city’s development code requires residential developments above a specified size to provide parkland; staff and commissioners…