Oshkosh parks board begins five-year CORP update, plans community survey

The Parkway Park board on [date not specified] began a five-year update of the citys Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (CORP), with consultants saying the revision is required to preserve eligibility for Department of Natural Resources grant funding.

John Kinnear of Rettler Corporation, the consulting firm working with the city, told the board the CORP serves as the park systems master plan and “is our master plan for the entire park system,” and described the update schedule and outreach steps. Kinnear said consultants and city staff will issue a community survey and return to the board with additional sections and draft recommendations through June.

Why it matters: The CORP directs inventories, needs assessments, capital improvement planning and the citys pursuit of grant funding. Kinnear said the document will update demographic information, produce a parkland inventory, assess needs and produce a prioritized capital improvement plan tied to funding opportunities.

At the meeting, consultants and staff walked board members through CORP goal categories: land acquisition (maintain adequate active and passive recreation lands), park facilities (ensure adequate facilities across neighborhood and community parks), shared services (coordination with Oshkosh Area School District, UW Oshkosh, Winnebago County and others), park development, preservation of environmentally sensitive or historically significant areas, amenities, funding sources and subdivision review. Consultants said the plan will also integrate other local documents, including the citys ADA self-assessment, bike-and-pedestrian planning and Fox River corridor work.

“[The CORP] is a tool in your toolbox for looking at the future of parks funding, and communicating with council and others for budgeting in the future,” Kinnear said, summarizing the documents intended use.

Board members and staff discussed particulars such as revisiting fees in lieu of land dedication and studying a possible parks/playgrounds/athletic impact fee; staff said a consultant has been hired to analyze the citys fees-in-lieu and potential impact-fee structure. Consultants also described the capital improvements prioritization framework (short-, medium- and long-term time horizons).

The consultants characterized this meeting as the first substantive update in the five-year process and said they would return with additional drafts for the boards review and public input. The board will have repeated opportunities to comment at future meetings and during the planned community survey.

The consultants presentation concluded with an invitation for board feedback on the draft goals and objectives; staff said the next CORP update will be brought to the board at future meetings ahead of a final recommendation to the Common Council.