Parks department requests staffing restores, equipment and funding for new parks, playground and event facilities

Lisa Clayton, director of Parks and Recreation, presented the department’s FY‑27 requests and highlighted 2025 openings and projects: the Pearl inclusive playground at Robertson Lake, the Bicentennial Park grand opening and early high attendance at events, and ongoing work on Carter Hill Park expansion in partnership with a trust. Clayton said two properties (including a 14‑acre site near Robertson Lake) are expected to be donated by mid‑2026 and that the city must plan for maintenance and access improvements once they are accepted.

Staff asked to unfreeze several groundsworker positions that were held during the pandemic; Clayton said the department has 54 employees and has added 17 acres of mowing responsibility as new parkland comes into maintenance. Equipment requests included replacement mowers and a crew‑cab landscape truck, compact loaders for urban forestry, shade structures for Jim Warren Park, and a potential phased artificial‑turf partnership at Jim Warren with the Franklin Baseball Club.

Clayton also proposed a sports economic assessment to determine whether additional investment in tournament facilities and turf fields would produce sufficient tourism and rental revenue to justify capital outlays; she said the county and regional partners are studying similar opportunities and that a local assessment would help align park impact‑fee funding and future designs.

Committee members emphasized the need to preserve high maintenance standards for existing parks and supported prioritizing staffing and maintenance investments to avoid service declines as new facilities come online.