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Park board recommends updated parkland dedication and equipment fees to City Council
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Summary
The Rockwall Park Board voted to recommend that City Council adopt updated cash‑in‑lieu and pro rata equipment fees for 2026, including a land value of $77,500 per acre and a $701,250 pro rata equipment fee; the board will forward the ordinance to Council for consideration on March 16.
The Rockwall Park Board voted to recommend the City Council adopt an ordinance updating parkland dedication cash‑in‑lieu and pro rata equipment fees for 2026.
Parks and Recreation staff told the board the consultant’s market study found the average land price for 2026 is $77,500 per acre, an increase of $2,500 from last year, and that equipment and amenity updates produced a net per‑park cost increase of $21,250. “Each year, the City of Rockwall adopts an ordinance that establishes the average price per acre for vacant land in the city of Rockwall and the equipment fees necessary to provide the required land and amenities for a public park,” parks staff said.
The staff recommendation the board approved would set a pro rata equipment fee of $701,250 for a fully developed neighborhood park and an updated per‑acre land value of $77,500; staff presented a total per‑park cost breakdown consistent with the city’s subdivision methodology. Parks staff emphasized these fees are collected from developers when projects are built; they said the developer — not the City’s general taxpayer fund — funds the fees or donates parkland when a development occurs.
A committee member asked whether the quoted equipment figures were vendor estimates or real quotes. Parks staff said the quoted prices are real vendor quotes gathered by staff (sprinkler systems, turf installation, playgrounds, trail work) while the consultant handles land valuation only.
A motion to adopt the fee schedule and send the ordinance to City Council was moved and seconded by a board member and the board approved the recommendation. Staff noted a misread during the motion (one board member briefly read $701,250,000); staff corrected the figure to $701,250.
The board will forward its recommendation and the draft ordinance to City Council for its March 16 meeting for final consideration; no formal council action had occurred at the time of the board meeting.
