Public input sought on Town of Warwick park and recreation plans

Warwick — Town of Warwick officials are looking for public input - in person and online - about recreational needs. Supervisor Michael Sweeton the town’s park and recreation plan will build on ideas initially developed through the town’s comprehensive planning and open space planning efforts. Through its park and recreation plan, the town is looking to assess the conditions of its community parks, identify current and future needs and establish a planning framework to meet those needs. Once completed, the plan will guide future parkland acquisition and recreational facilities development in the Town of Warwick. “A park and recreation plan is an important community planning tool, as it not only assesses the condition of existing parks and resources, but it also provides residents with an opportunity to let their elected officials know what they want or need at their local parks,” Sweeton said. Public visioning open house An inclusive collaborative public outreach program will be conducted to support the effort. The first effort, a “Public Visioning Open House,” will be held at three locations simultaneously on Wednesday, Nov. 30. Doors will be open from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Warwick Town Hall, the Florida Senior Center and the Greenwood Lake Senior Center. Residents are free to join the visioning sessions at any time between those hours. Each location will house storyboard exhibits describing Warwick’s parks. The storyboards will include photographs depicting existing conditions at the local parks, and summaries of each park’s resources. Maps will identify the location of parks and other recreational resources, including existing and proposed trails. Attendees will be invited to share their ideas about what they feel is needed at their local parks, such as additional ball fields, new playgrounds, or more basketball courts. They will also be asked to identify what other recreational facilities they would like to see in the community, such as trails or neighborhood tot lots. Online resident survey The second public outreach effort will be an “online resident survey,” which will be accessible from Nov. 28 through to Dec. 12. Postcards - including information on how to login and how non-internet households can obtain a paper copy of the survey - will be sent out to residents. The online survey will allow the community to have results almost immediately. Any Warwick households that do not receive a postcard with survey login information are asked to call 1-800-755-2237 for a resident identification number. The public outreach process is scheduled to be complete by the end of the year, with the plan anticipated to be finalized by early 2006. To assist in this effort, the town has hired Laberge Group, a multi-disciplinary municipal consulting firm based in Albany, to work with the Town’s Parks and Recreation Commission. For more information, call 986-1120 ext. 5.