Join NACPRO in Valdosta this May
Valdosta, Georgia - May 14-16, 2022
NACPRO's annual meeting will be hosted by the Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority
Spotlight on the County Park Tour - Saturday, May 14
North Lowndes Sports Complex
South Georgia’s best new sports complex boasts nine fields for soccer, lacrosse, football, and more. The park originally held a large multipurpose field, playground, walking path, and a skate park. Through a partnership with Lowndes County and the Georgia Department of Transportation, VLPRA was able to acquire 65 acres of land free of charge to expand the park into a full athletic complex. Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) dollars funded the addition of eight lit soccer fields with restrooms and parking, which will open to the public soon. The most recent SPLOST added even more funding to create a five-field baseball/softball complex in the same area. Construction on that addition starts soon. Future plans include an indoor recreation/sports center, playground, 5K trail, and dog park.
McKey Park Tennis Center/Future Pickleball Courts
McKey Park is in the middle of Valdosta and is home to the hugely popular Harry B. Anderson Tennis Center. The tennis center features 18 tennis courts that are used for lessons, clinics, and general tennis recreation. The pristine courts are a true gem as they are free for open play and always will be as a condition of the initial land donation. The center has a tennis shelter, bleachers, bathrooms, and water fountains as well as a pro shop that houses the tennis pro's office. Pickleball is a hot ticket and VLPRA is responding to the local demand by adding 12 pickleball courts next to the current tennis complex. Like the tennis courts, the pickleball courts will be used for open play and will host a variety of local, regional, and state tournaments. The park also features two large playgrounds and is a hub of activity.
Freedom Park-Miracle League Complex
VLPRA and the Miracle League of Valdosta worked in a public/private partnership to build the nation's largest Miracle Field, which is the centerpiece of the Miracle Field Complex at Freedom Park. The Miracle Field is a two-dimensional rubberized field with fully accessible dugouts that feature full bathrooms. There's also a fully accessible concession stand and restroom building, a fully accessible pavilion, and a boundless playground where children of all abilities can play together. The Miracle Field is flanked by four standard baseball/softball fields to highlight inclusivity. This complex is the crown jewel of VLPRA's parks and facilities.
Learn more: 2022-Valdosta-Program-v1.pdf
Register to attend: https://nacpro.memberclicks.net/2022-registration-form
Best Practices Forum
Got an issue you need advice on? Or a best practice you want to share? Send us the details and we will publish it in the next NACPRO News.
Welcome New Members
Ms. Mila Neal Assistant Director Loudoun County Parks, Recreation and Community Services, Virginia
Mr. Jay Logan Director of Outreach/Athletics/Senior Programs Tuscaloosa County Park and Recreation Authority, Alabama
A Word from our Sponsors
These Accessible Campfire Rings meet ADA guidelines Courtesy of Pilot Rock
The FSW Series Campfire Rings combine a single level swivel cooking grate with our flanged fire ring. The 300 sq. inch single level Swivel Grate will move 180 degrees – from over the fire to completely out of the fire ring – for easy fire building and serving. The handle is never over the fire. This Swivel Grate design meets the ADA guidelines for reach and operability.
Model FSW-30 Series Accessible Campfire Ring features a 30" inside diameter and is available in two side heights, both of which meet ADA guidelines for accessibility.
Learn more about Pilot Rock's firerings: https://www.pilotrock.com/videos/detail/1/
Research and Resources
Federal Funding Opportunities: Congressional Appropriations (Earmarks) Are Back! Courtesy of NRPA
By Elvis Cordova
As you may recall, Congress resurrected the earmark process last year, after being out of commission for the past decade. Having an earmark, or Community Project Funding request, included in the final appropriation law essentially allows members of Congress to bypass the traditional federal funding process and get funding directly allocated to priority projects in their district.
A successful earmark request can add valuable funds to ‘shovel-ready’ projects that are already underway or are in the late planning stages. If you have projects in your community that would be a good fit, NRPA recommends you contact your representative as soon as possible to familiarize them with your proposal(s). To increase the likelihood of your project getting accepted, we recommend that you coordinate with as many stakeholders in your district as possible to demonstrate the broad base of constituent support behind your project. Keep in mind that congressional members are looking to make the greatest impact with these funding requests. That means that the larger impact your project will have on a broad base of stakeholders, the greater the likelihood that this funding proposal will be approved.
Read more: https://www.nrpa.org/blog/federal-funding-opportunities-congressional-appropriations-earmarks-are-back/
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Resources Courtesy of PBIC Messenger
The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) that passed in November 2021 now governs all Federal transportation policy and funding through 2026. FHWA and other organizations continue to create resources to explain the law and help agencies and others use it to create a safer, more resilient, and equitable transportation future. The FHWA Bipartisan Infrastructure Law webpage serves as a one-stop shop for the law and its implementation. It will continue to add to its growing resources of fact sheets, funding notices, guidance, regulations, and presentations as well as technical assistance and support for local public agencies.
Transportation Alternatives: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bipartisan-infrastructure-law/ta.cfm
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bipartisan-infrastructure-law/
Transportation Alternatives Resources Courtesy of the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s (RTC’s) Transportation Alternatives Data Exchange (TrADE) recently released an analysis of FY 2021 federal TA funds. Looking for more on TA? Check out the recording from last week’s “TrADE Talk: Strategies for TA Funding Implementation” webinar to hear from the authors of RTC’s annual TA spending report as well as several innovative TA managers from around the United States.
Analysis: https://www.railstotrails.org/media/1182773/fy21_trade_analysis.pdf
Webinar recording: https://www.railstotrails.org/resource-library/resources/webinar-trade-talk-strategies-for-transportation-alternatives-funding-implementation/
RVIA/CHMGS State of the National Campground Industry Courtesy of CHM Government Services
The public’s increasing interest in the Outdoor Hospitality industry, which includes camping, has spurned a need to understand the national inventory of campgrounds in the public and private sector. The Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (“RVIA”) engaged CHM Government Services to undertake the first ever comprehensive national campground industry survey. RVIA released preliminary findings of the study on March 29th. This comprehensive study included a sampling of private sector campgrounds and a universal inventory of all public campgrounds (e.g. federal, state, county/city). The study focused on campgrounds that existed in developed locations. (e.g. excluded Hike/Bike In, Boondocking, and privately owned sites that are part of a listing of private owners). Some of the report findings are provided below:
Finding 1: The estimated 27,400 campgrounds are relatively evenly split between the public (55%) and private sector (45%).
Finding 2: Of the approximately 2.1 million campsites, the private sector has approximately 2.5 times that of the public sector.
Finding 3: Of the estimated 1.6 million RV campsites, the private sector is the largest provider of RV sites at a ratio of 5.3:1.
Read more: https://tinyurl.com/mrmhepam
Local Data for Better Health Courtesy of PBIC Messenger
Planning (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Presents PLACES, a repository of searchable county level health data including estimates for 29 chronic disease related measures, many of which have significant transportation connections to help users better understand the burden and geographic distribution of health related outcomes in an area and assist in planning public health interventions.
For more information: https://www.cdc.gov/places/
AARP Walk Audit Tool Kit Courtesy of the PBIC Messenger
In too many communities, people can’t safely walk to where they need or want to go due to a lack sidewalks, crosswalks or other safety features that make streets safe for pedestrians and drivers.
A walk audit is a simple activity in which an individual or a team observes and evaluates the walkability of a location to document how and if pedestrians can safely travel along a street, navigate an intersection and get from point A to B, C and so on.
For more information: https://www.aarp.org/livable-communities/getting-around/aarp-walk-audit-tool-kit/
Not Enough Lifeguards Courtesy of Parks and Recreation Business
By Jefferey Spivey
Throughout the last two years, many industries have struggled to recruit, hire, and retain workers. Aquatic departments haven’t been immune to these challenges, but unlike other employers, they faced a labor shortage before the pandemic.
Part of the usual lifeguard pipeline includes individuals who participate in programs like swimming lessons or competitive swim teams. Due to a series of closures, restrictions, and mandates, however, youth have had fewer opportunities to engage.
With last year’s complexities in the rearview mirror, aquatic departments are completely rethinking their hiring approaches in an effort to avoid the same hiccups. Strategies vary, based on budgets and service-area size, but ultimately parks departments facing similar shortages can use the ideas as a starting point to reverse their fortunes.
Read more: https://www.parksandrecbusiness.com/articles/not-enough-lifeguards
Want a Healthier Neighborhood? Plant a Tree Courtesy of HealthDay
It turns out that trees might be good medicine. How so? New research shows that having lots of trees in your neighborhood could improve your health and lower your medical costs.
"It's time to stop looking at trees simply as an amenity and start recognizing the essential services they provide," said study author Ming Kuo, director of the Landscape and Human Health Lab the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana.
Her team analyzed 13 years of data from Kaiser Permanente Northern California on 5 million people. The aim: to compare levels of tree cover in the five blocks around people's homes with their medical care and costs.
After accounting for income and other factors, researchers found that people with the fewest trees in their neighborhood had higher levels of health problems and $374 more in medical costs per year than those in the greenest areas.
Read more: https://consumer.healthday.com/b-4-4-want-a-healthier-neighborhood-plant-a-tree-2657063515.html
A Guide for Multiple Use Waterway Management, Third Edition Courtesy of the River Management Society
RMS is proud to share the recent publication of The Guide for Multiple Use Waterway Management, Third Edition, because it supports the reduction of recreational boating fatalities and injuries through improved understanding of and accessibility to tools needed to implement sound management processes on shared recreational waters, including the intersection of commercial traffic and recreational users.
In addition, this Guide provides direction for effective waterway management, including policy development, and communication for public understanding, acceptance, and compliance. The Third Edition (2021) addresses current thinking and planning frameworks for ongoing and future waterway management issues. RMS members and staff contributed to the project alongside colleagues at the American Canoe Association, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators.
Download here: https://www.waterwaymanagement.org/home
In the News
Judge rules against Navy SEAL training at Washington State Parks Courtesy of NW News Network
By Courtney Flatt
WASHINGTON - The Navy SEALs won’t be able to use Washington State Parks as training grounds. A judge on Friday ruled against an earlier decision to allow the training at up to 28 parks.
In January 2021, the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission voted 4-3 to approve the Navy’s proposal to use up to 28 parks for training purposes, where SEALs would emerge from the water under the cover of darkness and disappear into the environment.
The decision rankled many recreationists, who said during public comments they would avoid these areas for fear that SEALs would watch them without the knowledge or consent of visitors.
On Friday, Thurston County Superior Court Judge James Dixon said the commission’s decision was illegal and outside its purview, which includes the protection and enhancement of parks.
Read more: https://www.nwnewsnetwork.org/2022-04-01/judge-rules-against-navy-seal-training-at-washington-state-parks
Secretary Haaland Celebrates Rappahannock Tribe’s Reacquisition of Ancestral Homelands Courtesy of the US Dept. of the Interior
VIRGINIA — Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) Director Martha Williams today celebrated the Rappahannock Tribe’s re-acquisition of 465 acres at Fones Cliffs, a sacred site to the Tribe located on the eastern side of the Rappahannock River in Virginia.
Fones Cliffs is located within the authorized boundary of the Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge. The land will be owned by the Rappahannock Tribe and be publicly accessible and held with a permanent conservation easement conveyed to the Service. Through the generosity of the family of William Dodge Angle, M.D., and with support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation through a grant from Walmart’s Acres for America Program, Chesapeake Conservancy purchased the land and donated the easement to the Service. The fee title was donated to the Rappahannock Tribe, which intends to place the land in Trust with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Read more: https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/secretary-haaland-celebrates-rappahannock-tribes-reacquisition-ancestral-homelands
Goodbye to Today's Wagner Park. Two Years of Resiliency Redo Lies Ahead Courtesy of the Tribeca Tribune
By Carl Glassman
NEW YORK - Beginning this summer and for the next two years, the popular 3.5 acres at the southern end of Battery Park City, with its sweeping views of New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty, will be fenced off for reconstruction. Once completed, the redesigned park will be part of a planned flood barrier system (and one of three such projects by the Battery Park City Authority) that will help protect Lower Manhattan from future storm surges and sea level rise. A raised, new pavilion is also part of the rebuilding plan.
Once transformed, the park will be elevated up to 12 feet, with raised central lawn and terraced gardens, and an extension of the esplanade that will connect to Pier A. Buried below the lawn and gardens will be a flood barrier and a drainage system for managing flood waters.
Read more: http://tribecatrib.com/content/goodbye-todays-wagner-park-two-years-resiliency-redo-lies-ahead
Training
2022 NRPA Annual Conference Sweepstakes
Before registration opens on Monday, May 9, enter our drawing for the chance to win access to the 2022 NRPA Annual Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. Join us this September 20-22 as park and recreation professionals from all over the country come together for three days of inspirational education sessions, energetic networking activities, and an inside look at the latest products for the field. Grand Prize
One lucky person will win the grand prize, including:
- 2022 NRPA Annual Conference full package registration (including education sessions, daily admission to the exhibit hall and access to the virtual conference)
- Three nights in a Phoenix hotel within the conference housing block
- $500 Visa gift card for travel/airfare expenses
Runner-up Prize
One runner-up winner will receive:
- 2022 NRPA Annual Conference virtual conference registration
The deadline to enter is May 8, 2022, at 11:59 p.m. EDT. The winners will be randomly selected and announced on the morning of May 9, before conference registration opens at 12 p.m. EDT.
Enter here: https://www.nrpa.org/conference/registration/sweepstakes/
Webinar: Revitalizing Rural Economies and Strengthening Main Streets Through Trails Courtesy of American Trails
Date: April 14, 2022 Time: 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm ET Cost: Free Organization: American Trails
In this webinar, Steph Bertaina will share about the Recreation Economy for Rural Communities (RERC) program which completed its pilot round in 2021. The RERC program is supported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the USDA Forest Service, and the Northern Border Regional Commission, and provides planning assistance to rural communities and small towns to help them leverage the growing interest in outdoor recreation to revitalize main streets and diversify the economy.
Participants will also hear from Sarah Pelkey and Caitrin Maloney in Poultney, Vermont, which was one of 10 community partners to receive RERC assistance in 2020-2021. Poultney experienced a tremendous economic shock when Green Mountain College shuttered its campus on Main Street in 2019. And yet, through dedicated community efforts, the town began exploring the role that outdoor recreation could play in diversifying Poultney’s economic base, boosting access to healthy activities for residents, and drawing in visitors to the area.
For more information: https://www.americantrails.org/training/revitalizing-rural-economies-and-strengthening-main-streets-through-trails
Webinar: Risk Management for Trails and Bike Parks Courtesy of American Trails
Date: April 21, 2022 Time: 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET Cost: Free Organization: American Trails
This is an introduction into risk management strategy for trails and bike parks by a leading expert in that field. We will explore what risk management is, and why you may want to include some risk management planning into your overall trails management program. This presentation is for land managers and trail stewardship organizations alike.
For more information: https://www.americantrails.org/training/risk-management-for-trails-and-bike-park
Water Challenges and Future Irrigation Practices Courtesy of NRPA
May 12 at 2 p.m. EDT
With the increasing scarcity of water resources, water conservation is key to maintaining our natural resources and fiscally sustaining our organizations. Join Jim Laiche of The Toro Company as he explores important elements of water conservation through irrigation operations and design.
For more information: https://learning.nrpa.org/products/water-challenges-and-future-irrigation-practices
2022 National Outdoor Recreation Conference Courtesy of the Society of Outdoor Recreation Professionals
September 11-15, 2022 - Knoxville, Tennessee
We received a lot of outstanding presentations and presenters have been notified if they were selected or put on the waitlist. We have notified this year's SORP award winners, and will soon notify new professional and student scholarship recipients. We are excited to recognize everyone in-person at NORC this fall in Knoxville!
For more information: https://www.recpro.org/national-outdoor-recreation-conference
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