Park(ing) Space

This week I attended a meeting requested by Jay Ellington, the Executive Director of the Park Authority. (jayellington@pwcparks.org) Ellington brought together some of his senior staff, Debbie Andrew, Operations, Planning & Support Services Director, Rick Washco, Communications Services Director and representatives of the local civic associations.

The Dale City Civic Association has partnered with the surrounding civic associations on several other occasions, and it’s great to work with such selfless, dedicated people like Martin Jeter from Mid County Civic Association,
Dr. Jack Kooyoomjian from Lake Ridge Occoquan Civic Association, Eileen Sheridan from Occoquan Land Use Advisory Committee and John Karhnak of Woodbridge Potomac Communities Civic Association.

I’m going to try not to bore you with a lot of verbiage regarding metrics and measures, (Since I probably already bored you with a slew of long names!) so let me stick to a few salient points:

The Park Authority does not have enough land. You probably already know that…I’m sure I’ve heard you say, “There’s nothing for kids to do!” I tend to think that’s not exactly true, since we have a baseball field, a youth softball field, five little league fields, six soccer fields, three pools, a community center, a recreation center, five outdoor basketball courts, a volleyball court, seven playgrounds and 13 picnic pavilions. Nevertheless, it is still woefully short of the number of facilities recommended for a community the size of Dale City.

We do have other great things for kids to enjoy like in the summer, but again, we need more recreational activities for a community of nearly 60,000 people.

Another painful Park Authority shortage is the lack of trails. A 2009 inventory of trails, not just in Dale City, but in all the Neabsco District, reflected a mere .08 miles of multi-use trails. The needs assessment recommends close to 20 miles of such trails.

Our problem in Dale City is particularly difficult. One of the most common ways the Park Authority acquires land is by proffer. Typically, when a builder submits a plan to develop a property, there are offers to provide funds for roads, schools, fire and rescue and police. Additionally, amenities, such as trails and parklands are also proffered at that time. We have very little space that is not yet developed, therefore; there are few opportunities to acquire land by proffer.

I think if we want to catch up to the recommended standards for parkland in Dale City, we’re going to need to think creatively and consider what may be likely to occur in the future. I’m wondering if we just built stacked parking (admittedly expensive, but oh, so worth it!) could we reclaim some of the acres of asphalt currently used as parking lots?

Schools have large campuses, but are they typically available for public use after hours or in the summer for recreation? Is liability an issue and I suspect we have to include the possibility of vandalism or other mischief? What about dual purpose? Is there a possibility to utilize the space that is reserved for service under the miles of power lines?

What do you think, Patch readers? Do you have any ideas for increasing parkland in Dale City? Maybe we can start with a parking space?