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Advisory committee to revisit Bay City parks mission, priority on balancing events and open green space
Summary
Staff urged the advisory committee to reassess the parks department mission and vision before finalizing design standards, noting tensions between low‑maintenance green space and active recreation needs such as youth tournaments and disc golf.
A Staff member urged the advisory committee to pause detailed design work until the group clarified the department’s mission, goals and vision. “Before we get too far in design, I think we we need to reassess if we need to update our mission statement,” the staff member said, reading the current mission from the Bay City recreation plan as enhancing community vitality through parks and providing safe, welcoming opportunities to play, learn and build community.
Committee members debated priorities. One member emphasized making parks attractive and usable year‑round and suggested investigating youth tournaments as a revenue and participation strategy, citing that larger youth tournaments can draw “30 to 100 teams on a weekend” and bring significant economic activity to the city. Another member cautioned that adding facilities such as disc golf can reduce open picnic or walking space and that mission clarity should guide trade‑offs: “Then it's not a picnic space anymore. It's not walking space,” a committee member said about adding activity‑specific facilities.
The staff member said they will draft a set of survey questions about mission, vision and goals and circulate them to the committee to gather input ahead of future meetings. The board agreed to consider a refreshed vision statement and specific objectives that can guide design standards and park classifications.
