11-27-2001 PTRC Agenda Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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APPENDICES — A. Arden Hills Park, Trail and Open Space Survey Results B. Public Meeting Summaries C. Trail Segment Analysis D. Individual Park Maps and Renovation Recommendations A. Arden Hills Park, Trail and Open Space Survey Results Introduction In February 2001 the City of Arden Hills, Minnesota conducted a public opinion survey of residents. The survey was designed to determine resident's attitudes about park, recreation and open space issues and to help guide preparation of a park, trail and open space plan for the city. The written survey was sent to 3,897 households and businesses in the city. A total of 593 completed surveys were returned for a response rate of 15%. This is a higher than normal response rate for a mail-back survey and indicates a high level of interest in city parks, trails and open spaces. This high response gives the survey results a relatively high degree of accuracy. The margin of error of the survey is plus or minus 4%. A copy of the survey is attached. The following is a summary of the findings, implications for the park and trail plan and the results for each question. 1) Visitation Of the 593 returned surveys, 45% of the participants used Arden Hills' parks and trails on a weekly basis, 21% on a monthly basis and 26% on a yearly basis. These percents remained mostly constant when broken into the four demographic areas, north, central, southeast and southwest. The frequency of park use among survey respondents is likely to be higher than the average resident's use of parks and trails. This is due to the possibility that park users were more likely to complete and return the survey than non- park users. 2) Barriers to participation. Only 8% of those surveyed said they had never used the park and trail system. Of this 8%, the two most frequent explanations as to why the respondent had never used a park or trail were: 1) The respondent was unaware of parks and trails or 2) The respondent was new to the community, which might also explain why they are unaware of the existing park and trail system. Overall, few barriers exist to participation. Barriers to participation (# of responses): Not aware of parks 16 Prefer other parks 7 Not interested 7 Parks hard to find 5 Inadequate transportation 1 3) Park & Trail Use Tony Schmidt Park is the most frequently visited park in Arden Hills. The survey results indicate that residents from all areas of Arden Hills use Tony Schmidt Park equally. Residents from all areas of the city also frequently use Cummings, Floral, Valentine Hazelnut and Perry. As expected, the frequency of use for each park seems to be based on their specific amenities, size and location. A smaller park such as 26