Freese and Nichols kicks off Anna parks master plan; consultants seek broad public input

Freese and Nichols project manager Wilson Kerr told the Anna Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Wednesday that the firm has begun a roughly 11-month parks and recreation master-plan process and is seeking input from residents, schools, youth sports, developers and other stakeholders.

The consultant said the plan will include a community assessment chapter required by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, an inventory of existing facilities, and recommendations tied to levels-of-service targets such as acres of parkland per 1,000 residents and miles of trails per population. "We want to make sure that we are engaged with the community throughout this process," Kerr said.

The plan’s purpose, Kerr said, is to create a 10-year vision with a short-/mid-/long-term implementation table, potential cost ranges for capital projects and a prioritized list that city staff and the city council can use for budgeting and grant applications. He said the plan will compare Anna’s current park acreage and facilities to industry standards and peer cities to identify gaps where investment should be targeted.

Board members and members of the public raised questions and suggestions during a wide-ranging discussion. Resident Andrew Macrina said he had checked water fountains at Natural Springs Park and the gazebo and found no working people’s fountains there despite a memo saying the fountains had been repaired: "So there's no water for people at Natural Springs Park," Macrina said. Board members noted the absence of an ADA-accessible fountain at Natural Springs Park and a lack of any fountain at Shirley Heritage Park; staff directed residents to the city’s service-request channels for repairs and tracking.

Participants discussed connectivity and safety as recurring themes. Several people urged the plan to prioritize trails and green-belt connections so children could reach parks without using Highway 5, and mentioned lighting and Safe Routes to School grant programs as potential funding avenues. Youth-sports stakeholders asked that the plan consider additional soccer and multiuse fields, including phased use of turf fields to reduce cancellations and maintenance delays. One board member suggested an aquatic facility as a long-term priority; the consultant said the survey and public input will show where that ranks among other needs.

Kerr and city staff outlined outreach methods: a public survey launched the previous Friday, postcards to Anna addresses, social media, newsletter promotion, signs and QR codes in parks. Kerr said the survey had received about 45 responses by roughly 1:30 p.m. on the day of the meeting. The consultant also plans five virtual stakeholder interviews (schools, athletic groups, HOAs, developers and residents) and a follow-up advisory-board presentation in August to present survey results and draft chapters.

The consultant emphasized that the plan will remain broad at the outset — providing priority areas and cost ranges rather than precise project siting — and that the parks board will act as a sounding board for draft recommendations. "We'll give you those recommendations for each chapter, and then you can tell us if we're going in the right direction," Kerr said.

The board and staff also discussed potential program and facility ideas raised by attendees, including a second large regional park similar in scale to Slater Creek Park, a multipurpose complex (the "ZPlex" model), additional parking and circulation planning for major parks, teen recreation programs, fishing-club support, and equipment-rental or checkout stations for paddles and other gear.

Kerr said staff will send the draft community-assessment chapter to city staff for review this week, begin the inventory chapter the following Monday, hold stakeholder interviews over the next two weeks, continue monitoring the open survey and return to the advisory board in August with survey findings and draft chapters.