Parks board to test master-plan concepts after 500-response survey; schedules March open houses and maps safety zone around Rod and Gun Club

The Broadwater County Parks and Recreation Board on Feb. 5 reviewed a combined public survey of roughly 500 responses and directed staff to prepare concept maps, cost estimates and outreach materials for two county properties as part of a draft master plan.

Jerry (county staff) and consultant Kevin presented the survey results and draft concepts for the Centerville (10-acre) parcel and a larger Canton Lane property. “I think Kevin knocked it out of the park with 500 survey results,” Jerry said. The survey’s top priorities included open space and walking paths, indoor multi-use courts and multi-use recreational fields; maintenance of existing facilities also ranked highly.

The board agreed to host two public open houses — March 4 and March 13 at the community center — with poster-board concept maps, survey graphics, cost-ballpark posters and a funding-options panel (recreation district, mill levy, grants, philanthropic donors). Staff will supply two concept posters per property, a poster of survey graphics and a rough-cost/funding poster for each open house.

For the Centerville 10-acre parcel, staff and board members emphasized that the site lacks sufficient water infrastructure for irrigated regulation-size ball fields and that smaller “tee-ball” or multi-use, low-water designs would be more feasible unless a well and pumping infrastructure are added. Board members asked that handouts include typical facility dimensions (basketball court, baseball field, soccer field) so attendees can see what fits on each property.

The Canton Lane site discussion included the Rod and Gun Club, which holds a memorandum of understanding filed in February 2008 that defines a safety zone. Board members asked that maps used for public workshops clearly show the safety zone. Brad Peck, representing the Rod and Gun Club, described current operations and usage: the range hosts ATA (American Trap Association) events that have drawn as many as 160 entries for a three-day event; 4-H and local trap activities generate regular weekend use. He said moving or reorganizing the club would be costly and operationally complex.

Peck described relocation and reconfiguration constraints: ATA-compliant events require specific flat ground and layouts; moving some shotgun operations would change required noise buffers because shotgun pellets travel farther than small-bore rounds. He estimated a rough moving/rotation cost to reconfigure firing lines at Canton Lane at approximately $30,000–$40,000. The board noted the safety-zone measurement in the existing memorandum of understanding is 1,000 feet (about 333 yards); staff said the board uses the largest recommended buffer as its working standard.

Commissioner Swenson (who also serves on the golf board) described the golf course’s constrained finances and irrigation issues if the course were to expand; a single green renovation bid had come in at more than $70,000, he said. Board members raised the leases that govern use of several county parcels; multiple leases (Rod and Gun Club, OBRA/Old Baldy Recreation Association and golf course) extend through 2029, which the board flagged as an important date for planning discussions.

Jerry and Kevin will prepare concept posters and simple, to-scale information (facility dimensions, rough costs, funding options) and circulate drafts to board members within about a week to 10 days so Great West and GIS staff can convert concept sketches into printable posters in time for the open houses. The board also agreed to ask community organizations to help publicize the open houses through email lists and events.

Votes at a glance: The board approved minutes from the Dec. 16 meeting by voice vote. The board elected officers by acclamation: the chair will continue in the current role and Derk (board member) was chosen as vice chair; the appointments were confirmed by motion and second and approved by acclamation.

Members said the open houses are intended to be interactive and visual: poster boards on easels, sticker voting, comment boards, and a staffed table with a to-scale paper map on which attendees can move post-it notes to test placement of fields, courts, trails and parking. Staff also proposed producing a short cost-comparison poster showing ballpark prices for gravel trails, ADA-compliant surfaces, and indoor court construction to help attendees evaluate trade-offs.