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Special City Council Meeting Monday, February 20, 2008 Page 5 Parks and Recreation Mr. Trudgeon noted that the parks were the jewels of the community and were critical to its qual- ity of life. Discussion included the last Park Master Plan done twenty (20) years ago and the need for up- dates; whether the Master Plans were ashort-term goal, or should be included in the medium- range goals; and the need for community input for individual master plans, and community 9a- cilities. Mr. Miller noted that it could be demonstrated that the City's park system assets were larger than any other city asset, and were also the least fmlded, creating an enormous funding gap. Mr. Miller suggested that this item obtain the highest priority of goals. Couucilmember Roe noted that this item may be a short-term start, however, may become more of a medium and long-term end to the process; needed to foster more active neighborhood input in the process; and could ultimately contribute to interaction between the City Council and citi- zens with development plans; and could serve to accomplish other goals in organizing the City around grass roots organizations, allowing the City to communicate more effectively with citi- zens and to receive more feedback through the process. City Manager Malinen noted that, while this item may have been listed under Parks and Recrea- tion as part of an original staff responsibility assignment for brainstorming purposes, it relates back to all departments and the community as a whole. Further discussion included how the Park Master Plans related to the Comprehensive Plan Up- date process; and the next step to create a Request for Proposals (RFP) to define parameters of a Master Plan update; and the need for a review every five (5) years. It was the consensus of Councilmembers and staff that the "unassigned" item to establish defined neighborhoods, as originally outlined as Goal 3.D, was incorporated in the Parks and Recreation section of short-term goals to encourage development of neighborhood groups, organizations and forums in order to provide residents with a sense of belonging. Parks and Recreation Director Lonnie Brokke noted that the majority of the City's park system was built in the 1960's and many of the aging facilities had outlived their useful lives (i.e., warming houses), and needed to be repurposed based on current trends, community input to de- termine uses; and incorporate the use of neighborhood groups/forums in determining how to cre- ate neighborhood gathering places. Public Works Discussion included a definition of a City Energy Policy and the need for the City to serve as an example of good stewardship sooner rather than later, with staff noting that several environ- mental initiatives had already begun, with more action plans forthcoming; and regional leader- ship by the City on a broader goal for sustainable development, regulation of development, codes, etc.