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Parks commission signs off on ebike engagement plan and forms subcommittee to refine survey
Summary
Commissioners gave staff direction on outreach for ebike regulations—targeting specific parks, schools and user groups—and voted to create a 2–3 member subcommittee to work with staff on the survey questions; staff will publish a Let's Talk page and launch the survey in April.
The Parks and Recreation Commission on March 26 reviewed staff’s proposed community engagement plan for potential ebike regulations in city parks and directed staff to broaden outreach and refine survey questions before the survey goes live.
Management analyst Amelia Jaden described a multipronged engagement plan: a Let’s Talk page with an online survey planned to run April through August, in‑person booths at about five community events and targeted outreach to groups such as Friends of Luther Burbank Park, Friends of Dragon Park, the Mercer Island Mountain Bike Club and senior programs. "Staff will conduct an outreach campaign that includes a Let's Talk page, an online survey, in‑person engagement opportunities, and promotion across various city channels," Amelia said during her presentation (see SEG 348).
Commissioner feedback: Commissioners asked staff to be explicit in the survey about which parks and trails questions reference, to include regular bikes along with ebikes to capture broader usage patterns, and to solicit input from middle and high school students. Several commissioners requested access to the draft survey before it is distributed; staff expressed concern that iterative group editing could trigger a serial meeting, but agreed to form a small subcommittee instead.
Formal action: The commission voted to create a subcommittee of two or three Parks Commission members to work with staff to develop final survey questions. Commissioner Westberg moved the motion and Commissioner Markson seconded; the roll call vote was unanimous (all commissioners Aye). Staff will coordinate membership offline and share the final survey content and schedule with the commission.
Why it matters: Commissioners said the issue could be politically sensitive and stressed the importance of clear questions and targeted outreach to groups likely to experience conflicts or have technical knowledge (police data on incidents, cycling clubs, school groups). Staff noted they will also present findings to the Open Space Conservancy Trust and return to the commission with survey results and outreach findings later this year.
