The Harrisonburg community is encouraged to envision their desires for parks, programs and play in The Friendly City, as Harrisonburg Parks & Recreation starts crafting a vision for the department’s future.
A series of open houses were held in October and an online survey is currently available for community members to inform the new Parks & Rec Master Plan – a document that acts as the blueprint for new and improved Parks & Rec amenities, programs, facilities and more.
Through the interactive website tool community members can take an online survey or add comments to an interactive map. Participants can zoom in on specific parks and provide comments about amenities they enjoy using there and any improvements they would like to see.
Additionally, some community members will receive a mailed survey, with recipients selected at random, that they are encouraged to complete and mail back using the included envelope.
Community members have already started sharing input on ways to improve parks and programs in Harrisonburg, new amenities or features they would like to see added, or any other feedback related to how their family likes to play.
Public meetings took place:
- Monday, October 19, 5pm to 7pm at the Lucy F. Simms Continuing Education Center, 620 Simms Ave.
- Tuesday, October 20, 5pm to 7pm at the Westover Park Cecil F. Gilkerson Community Activities Center, 305 S. Dogwood Drive
- Thursday, October 22, 5pm to 7pm at the Harrisonburg Public Works Administrative Building, 320 E. Mosby Road
- Additional pop-up events will be held around the community this fall.
This master plan process gives the Harrisonburg community an opportunity to be the driving factor in the decisions about what current and future generations will be playing on and taking part in in the coming years.
Once input is received and reviewed, Parks & Rec will present a draft master plan for community review. Stay tuned for future updates on this project.