Pocatello receives first formal Parks, Recreation, Open Space and Trails master plan; prioritizes trails, maintenance and accessibility

Brian Trustee, principal of Pros Consulting, presented the draft Parks, Recreation, Open Space and Trails Master Plan to the Pocatello City Council at the April 3 work session and described it as “the first of its kind for the city of Pocatello.”

The plan’s authors said it emphasizes three phases — inventory, ideation and implementation — with an emphasis on aligning the parks plan to the city comprehensive plan, increasing trail connectivity, addressing aging park infrastructure, and improving accessibility.

The plan team described extensive community engagement. Consultant Trustee said the project included stakeholder interviews, three public meetings, an online mapping tool and an online survey that ran February–August 2024; a statistically valid survey was conducted April–June 2024. Trustee said the statistically valid survey required nearly 400 completed responses and that those results were weighted most heavily in their prioritization.

Survey and analysis highlights presented to the council included: multi-use paved trails, indoor aquatic facilities, improved restrooms, unpaved trails and small neighborhood parks ranked highly among facility priorities; outdoor recreation, adult fitness and recreational swim were top programming priorities. Trustee summarized one survey exercise by saying, “If we gave you a hundred dollars how would you allocate it,” and reported that respondents placed highest priority on improvement and maintenance of existing parks and facilities, followed by new trails and open space.

Trustee presented program portfolio metrics showing 52% of city programs in an introductory phase, 31% mature, and 17% in a declining or saturated phase; he said the distribution is “helpful for your recreation programming team” to identify programs that need attention or potential retirement. The presentation included site and facility recommendations such as accessibility upgrades, inclusive playground design, phased tree‑canopy replacement, and a recommendation to develop a comprehensive trails plan as a sibling document to the master plan.

Trustee and staff outlined a set of implementation recommendations: design standards for parks and trails, a prioritized list of neighborhood park targets to close service gaps, park‑by‑park and trail‑specific recommendations (the consultant cited 24 park‑by‑park recommendations and 72 park‑level actions), and guidance to pursue creative partnerships and funding for large indoor facilities. Trustee repeatedly cautioned that large indoor facilities and aquatics centers are costly to build and operate and “will require partnerships and creative funding opportunities.”

Council members asked about trends since COVID, program participation, and whether program declines were driven by facility gaps. Trustee said some participation changes reflect national patterns and local facility availability; he specifically noted cases such as flag football and adult sports where competing providers or scheduling have affected participation. Staff and council discussed prioritizing maintenance and accessible restroom facilities and adding shade/trees to parks.

The draft plan was described as released for a 30‑day public comment period after staff and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board reviewed it. Consultant Trustee said the plan was intentionally structured to present recommendations up front with supporting analysis following, and the presentation closed by inviting council questions and discussion.

Next steps outlined in the presentation: staff review of public comments and continued coordination with Parks and Recreation Advisory Board; council questions and potential future action to adopt the final plan were not scheduled during the work session.