Consultant outlines draft parks and recreation master plan; public comment to follow

Jane Dixon, a consultant with McKenna, told the Huntington Woods Planning Commission that the city engaged McKenna in May to update its parks and recreation master plan and that the Michigan Department of Natural Resources requires municipalities to update those plans every five years in order to remain eligible for state grant funding. "If you do not have an up to date plan, you cannot qualify to apply for any grant funding through the state," Dixon said.

Dixon said the update emphasizes capital improvements rather than the prior plan’s maintenance focus and ties recommendations to national recreation benchmarks provided by the National Recreation and Park Association. "We really wanted to create a plan that was comprehensive and also something the community had input on," she said, noting the consultant team performed park tours, hosted a comment map and survey, staffed a design board at a summer concert and held in-person events at the recreation center.

The consultant reported roughly 200 survey contributions (160 unique IPs) as of the presentation and described additional engagement channels the team used: two parks bus tours, outreach at the Concert in the Park and a staffed table at the recreation center. Dixon said the draft will first go to the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board, then be released for a 30-day public comment period; she said a City Commission adoption could be considered as early as Sept. 16 but that timing is contingent on the comment period and possible revisions.

Commissioners and residents asked how the city would increase public engagement and show draft concepts visually. Dixon and staff said the presentation packet (not projected that night because of a technology issue) would be posted and that staff could arrange printed displays at city facilities; a video editor also agreed to superimpose the presentation into the recorded meeting video so the community can view the slides on the city YouTube channel.

Discussion touched on accessibility and sustainability goals in the draft plan: benchmarking park facilities by age cohort and disability access, incrementally improving universal-access playground elements, and treating parks as stormwater infrastructure with more permeable surfaces and trees to reduce runoff. Dixon said some concepts raised in earlier engineering work (for example possible reconfigurations of facilities) were not McKenna’s recommendations by default and would be vetted through public comment.

On specific facility issues, commissioners and residents asked about Scotia Park sidewalks, the roller rink and skate park, benches and mitigation of pickleball sound. Dixon said public input is split on the skate park and that the team is analyzing technical feasibility, funding and community preference before proposing recommendations. She said some larger projects in the draft intentionally extend beyond the five-year horizon to create a 10-year action outlook.

Timing and next steps noted by staff and Dixon: preliminary review by the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board is scheduled for Aug. 12, with a potential City Commission adoption hearing in mid-September if the draft is released for public comment on schedule. The presentation packet will be made available on the city website and in printed form at City Hall, the library and the recreation center before the public comment period begins.

Residents who spoke at the meeting expressed concern that outreach to some neighborhoods was limited and urged clearer visual presentations of proposed changes, more signage in parks, and expanded newspaper and mail notice. Dixon and staff asked residents to share outreach ideas and offered contact information to accept late input before the draft goes to the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board.