Edmonds Parks & Recreation Open Space, Community Cultural Plan updates before Planning Board Wednesday

The PROS plan and Community Cultural Plan will include open-space considerations. (Photo courtesy City of Edmonds)
The PROS plan and Community Cultural Plan will include open-space considerations. (Photos courtesy City of Edmonds)

This Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m., the Edmonds Planning Board will hold a public hearing regarding the Edmonds Parks & Recreation Open Space (PROS) and Community Cultural plans, as each goes through its respective multi-stage process for updating.

The current PROS plan can be viewed online here and the 35-page Community Cultural Plan is available for review here.

The updated collaborative plans will establish the city’s support of arts and culture and will set in place a framework under which community organizations can assist in developing future opportunities.

In affirming the city’s commitment to arts and culture the city notes that the Community Cultural Plan “is a direct result of the community’s ongoing commitment to and participation in the arts”.

The public’s participation in updating the two plans began in June 2013 under the guidance of city consultants MIG as 200 members of the community took part in an Arts Summit. From that summit, MIG developed a phased “integrated planning process” of which Wednesday’s public hearing is a part. Following the Arts Summit 1,161 survey respondents added their voices to the process along with 400 participants to a phone survey of Edmonds registered voters. MIG submitted drafts of the Parks & Recreation Open Space and Community Cultural Plans on Dec. 10, 2013 with a request for feedback.

An Arts Summit workshop.
An Arts Summit workshop.

The public hearing and public comment portions of the update process is expected to be completed by the end of February. The city council’s adoption of the PROS plan ensures that it will maintain state and federal grant eligibility through 2020.

In developing the two plans, in what MIG characterizes as a phased “integrated planning process,” the consultants took into account related city planning documents, the city’s demographics, community involvement (including input from focus groups) and an analysis of City of Edmonds open space needs. A number of other considerations were outlined in the consultant’s report, which can be viewed here.

After consideration by the Planning Board, the draft plans will be forwarded to the Edmonds Arts Commission for consideration before being sent to the City Council for action.

The public hearing will be in the Council Chambers, Public Safety Complex, 250 5th Ave. N., Edmonds, and is expected to take 45 minutes. Questions regarding the hearing, and the process, can be directed to Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Director Carrie Hite at 425-771-0220 or via email at carrie.hite@edmondswa.gov.

— By Emily Hill

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