City auditor finds park-planning gaps and $8 million in unused fees at risk

The city auditor told the council that Denton's parks system is generally delivering expected services but that planning, fee methodology and recordkeeping need fixes to meet long-term goals.

Madison Rorshaw, Denton City Auditor, said the audit found the city had not established equity-related service-level goals and that the Master Plan's 17.5 acres-per-1,000-residents target was likely infeasible without substantial new investment. Rorshaw called out the 2022 parkland-dedication ordinance's fee-in-lieu calculation for using parcel appraised values (and parcel-level valuation) rather than acreage-based or fair-market valuations. "We recommended the City use the average acreage value instead of parcel value to calculate the fee in lieu during the next ordinance update and consider using fair market value instead of the appraised value," Rorshaw said.

Auditors also reported maintenance and inventory weaknesses: the parks asset list historically lacked comprehensive condition and count data (though an inventory was completed in December 2025), inspection forms were inconsistently completed and retained, and the park maintenance work-order system has been paused while a citywide asset-management project is on hold. The audit identified about $8 million in fees that could be refunded if not spent under the 1998 ordinance's geographic restrictions and issued 15 recommendations. Department staff agreed with all recommendations and will provide follow-up; the auditor proposed a follow-up review in FY28 unless council requests an earlier check-in.