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Lakewood parks director previews 2026 legacy plan with trails, equity and a year-end RCO submission target
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Summary
Parks director Roxanne Miles told the council the 2026 Parks, Recreation and Open Space update will add a trails chapter, refine inventory and level-of-service maps, prioritize walking trails and water access, and seek RCO concurrence ahead of grant cycles.
Roxanne Miles, Lakewood’s parks and community services director, briefed the City Council on the city’s update to its parks legacy plan and the timeline for community outreach and grant-readiness.
Miles said the six-year update will convert the city’s PROS plan into a Parks, Recreation, Open Space and Trails plan by adding a trails chapter and by updating the inventory, demographics and level-of-service maps (including a 10-minute walk shed analysis). Staff will combine survey results and GIS mapping to identify gaps and prioritize capital projects and programming that support equitable access.
Miles highlighted early survey findings from outreach that ran through February: walking trails (paved and unpaved) topped priorities, followed by water access (beach and boat-launch amenities) and playgrounds/picnic shelters. Safety concerns, lack of information and competing time constraints were the most-cited barriers to park use. The plan will also explicitly address priority populations including low-income residents, youth, older adults, BIPOC communities and persons with disabilities.
Miles said the draft plan will be ready for additional public vetting in August–September and that staff aims to submit the updated plan to the Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) by the end of the year so Lakewood remains eligible for major state park grants. She said the plan’s strategic-management chapter will include policies and program recommendations in addition to capital priorities.
Council members asked detailed questions about specific trail features (Gravelly Lake loop, Wards Lake pump track), benchmarking peer cities, and possible uses of conservation-future funds. Miles said the consultants will refine comparable-cities analysis and the outreach schedule and will return with a more complete draft in August.
