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City outlines options and survey for Sky Country Park improvements
Summary
City park planner Karina Mercier presented a community-informed plan for Sky Country Park in Northwest Reno, proposing a playground, a fenced dog area, ADA paths and shade structures funded by residential construction tax; staff will run an English/Spanish survey to guide design.
City park planner Karina Mercier told the Ward 5 Neighborhood Advisory Board that the city has allocated residential construction tax funds to improve Sky Country Park, a mostly undeveloped 7‑acre site in Northwest Reno.
"We're looking to make some improvements to Sky Country Park," Mercier said, noting the project is funded by residential construction tax (collected at $1,000 per new unit in the district) and must be spent in the district that generated the revenue. She described options and rough cost estimates: a new playground ($400,000–$700,000), a dog park (typically under $200,000), a paved ADA path (about $120,000), and a picnic shelter (about $100,000). Bench and picnic‑table costs vary based on site work; Mercier noted picnic tables can require concrete pads and cost up to $10,000 each.
Mercier said the department will post a community survey in English and Spanish for a month (online at reno.gov/engage and via flyers on site) and will use public feedback to engage a landscape architect to develop a final design. Board members raised safety and maintenance concerns: Corey Fredericks and others urged fencing and lighting near McCarran Boulevard to protect children and pets from traffic; Mercier said she would confirm existing fence conditions and include waste receptacles and dog‑waste stations in dog‑park cost estimates. Members also stressed maintenance tradeoffs: capital funds for construction cannot be used for ongoing maintenance, and Mercier said the parks department is still catching up on deferred maintenance with an estimated outstanding maintenance need in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
Mercier said the project team will consider retaining natural vegetation where possible and will weigh public input on amenities such as disc‑golf practice areas, bocce or repurposing an abandoned volleyball court. The board encouraged staff to include lighting and waste collection options on the survey. The department's next step is to gather community responses, work with a landscape architect and return with a design informed by public input.
