02/13/2007
2/14/2007
By Keith K. Daellenbach, Madrone Wall Preservation Committee
The Parks Advisory Board (PAB) reviewed Clackamas County Parks Department staff recommendations for the next five years parks budget on 23 January. Thirty-five projects were recommended by County Parks staff for funding from an overall budget of $6.437 million. Included in the staff recommendation were two Madrone Wall allocations.
A $40K Hardscrabble Master Plan allocation was recommended for FY2007-2008. The master plan would plan for park activities and uses, capital expenses, traffic studies, on-site parking needs/design, and state highway approach. The master plan should be completed in nine to twelve months after the fiscal year starts on July 1, 2007.
A second recommended allocation by County Parks was for Madrone Park Improvements to occur four years later in FY2011-2012 (Year 5) for $300K. Creating required on-site parking is identified as the single largest capital expense; other capital expenditures include a porta-potty, signage, and trail materials. Three separate estimates acquired by the MWPC last fall show the cost to grade and finish a parking lot for 50 cars will cost a maximum of $40K for gravel and $70K for asphalt. While these estimates do not include surveying, permitting, or site preparation, they do indicate that park improvements may be significantly less than what this $300K capital allocation allows for.
The MWPC has lined-up several professionals, including cartographers and traffic engineers, willing to donate pro bono time to assist the planning process further reducing County costs. It is critical that the County follow through with their goal to make this a priority by establishing funding for capital improvements in years immediately following the FY2007-2008 park master planning process. This logic is applied to other County projects and the Madrone Wall should not be an exception. The master plan should not languish four years before something concrete is accomplished.
The next PAB meeting on February 20th at 7:00 p.m. will be critical. This meeting will further refine the Parks budget and finalize recommendations for consideration by the Commissioners. Reallocation decisions at the January PAB meeting will provide the opportunity to move up Year 5 Madrone Wall capital funding to FY 2008-2009 which is warranted.
While it is up to the PAB Chair to take comments from visitors, if you would like to provide input, we encourage you to attend this critical planning meeting. It will be held on Tuesday the 20th in Room 436 of the Countys Sunnybrook Service Center (9101 S.E. Sunnybrook Blvd., Clackamas). We also encourage you to contact the Commissioners directly (www.co.clackamas.or.us/bcc/) and register your support for the timely creation of a County park in a park-barren area with massive anticipated population growth in Damascus. The Board of County Commissioners review of PAB budget recommendations and setting FY2007-2008 budget.