Courtesy of Denver Parks & Recreation
Audio By Carbonatix
Denver Parks & Recreation has relaunched its 20-year planning survey after abruptly pulling it last month.
The city’s Recreation Center Strategic Plan survey went live on June 23, asking residents to weigh in on Parks & Rec’s goals over the next 20 to 30 years. The survey, open till July 31, will help highlight what the “community needs today” and “imagine what future generations will enjoy and guide smart investments for years to come,” according to Parks & Rec.
Along with the survey, the department will also host three open houses over the week for residents to discuss ideas and wants in person. The first gathering is at the Washington Park Recreation Center, 701 S. Franklin St., from 5-7 p.m. today, June 23. A virtual meeting will also be held at 5 p.m. on Wed., June 24.
The events and survey were initially scheduled for May 27, with the department advertising the dates for weeks beforehand. But Parks & Rec pulled the survey and canceled the open houses after the fatal shooting of 14-year-old Mikail Nasir Khalid Payne at the Montbello Recreation Center on May 21.
A GoFundMe for Payne’s family has reached over $25,000 as of June 23.
“On the day of the tragedy, he was standing up for his brother during an altercation and did not initiate violence. In the midst of the confrontation, another teenager allegedly shot Mikail at close range,” Payne’s family has said.
A community meeting was then held on May 26 by Parks & Rec and the Denver Police Department during which community leaders discussed how to combat youth violence in the community.
“We’re going to work with all of our city partners. We’re going to work with the community,” Parks & Rec Executive Director Jolon Clark said during the May 26 meeting, adding that they need to come together to make sure “our rec centers are still the safest places for our young people to be.”
However, the Parks & Rec survey doesn’t ask questions regarding safety at recreation centers.
The survey includes questions about how to spur interest in the MY Denver Card, a pass to libraries, museums and recreation centers for kids aged five to 18. Participants are also asked about adding new activities at rec centers and how to increase visitors at indoor and outdoor pools. Parks & Rec has been touting a new pool facility at Swansea Recreation Center, which opened in the north Denver neighborhood on May 26, but the department will also have to rebuild the Aztlan Outdoor Pool entirely after it was found leaking 16,000 gallons of water each day.
The survey can be found at DenverGov.org.
