March 25, 2024
PRESS RELEASE: Asheville Parks & Recreation comprehensive plan survey, workshops begin this week
Following multiple in-person and online engagement opportunities last summer and fall, Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) has scheduled additional feedback workshops and a survey for Recreate Asheville: Shaping Our City’s Parks, a community-driven comprehensive plan to guide the City of Ashevlle’s parks and recreation decisions for the next 10-15 years.
“On March 27, we’ll report back what we heard last year, share how it’s driving draft plan ideas and recommendations, and ask for community review and feedback,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “This is really exciting because we’re starting to fine tune what will become the final community-built plan. Feedback shared during this phase will be incorporated with information from the previous community needs assessment period to draft a vision plan that will be shared in late spring. An additional review and comment period in May and June will create the final Recreate Asheville plan.”
The Recreate Asheville plan is not an operations model or financial budget, though it is a framework to help guide future investments in recreation programs and spaces. It will not contain detailed design proposals for specific neighborhoods, parks, or facilities, but sets the vision and values for systemwide investments throughout our city.
Help Spread the Word
Community members can help spread the word by sharing this flyer in English and Español or the link to www.RecreateAsheville.com with friends and neighbors by email, social media, listserv, and/or neighborhood group. They can also take the survey online or join one of the community workshops listed below.
Recreate Asheville Feedback Opportunities
Complimentary transit vouchers available to attend workshops via ART buses. Please request one at parks@ashevillenc.gov or 828-259-5800.
March 27-April 15: Online survey available at https://publicinput.com/recreateasheville at noon on March 27 through midnight on April 15
March 27 at 6pm: Virtual community meeting with a presentation followed by town hall-style comment period at https://publicinput.com/recreateasheville
Drop-in open house community meetings with opportunities to stay as little or as long as your schedule allows to participate in hands-on activities and speak directly with APR staff. Activities for school age children provided by APR recreation specialists. All attendees receive an APR-branded clear tote that complies with most stadium and venue rules for sports events, concerts, and events.
March 28 from 7-11am at Stephens-Lee Community Center on 30 George Washington Carver Avenue with complimentary donuts, coffee, and juice
March 28 from 1:30-6pm at Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center on 121 Shiloh Road
April 6 from 10am-2pm at Carrier Park (along French Broad River Greenway in front of the restroom building) on 220 Amboy Road
Asheville Parks & Recreation
With its oldest parks dating to the 1890s, Asheville Parks & Recreation manages a unique collection of more than 65 public parks, playgrounds, and open spaces throughout the city in a system that also includes full-complex recreation centers, swimming pools, Riverside Cemetery, sports fields and courts, and community centers that offer a variety of wellness-, education-, and culture-related programs for Ashevillians of all ages. With 10 miles of paved greenways and numerous natural surface trails, its complete portfolio acts as the foundation of a vibrant hub for the people of Asheville to connect with their neighbors and explore the natural beauty of a livable and walkable city.
Driven by the promise that Asheville is a better and safer place when everyone from infants to retirees has the opportunity to be supported, healthy, and successful, Asheville Parks & Recreation was the first nationally-accredited municipal recreation department in the United States. For latest updates, sign up for Asheville Parks & Recreation’s monthly newsletter, follow the department on Facebook (@aprca) and Instagram (@ashevilleparksandrecreation), or visit www.ashevillenc.gov/parks.