Park board presents 10-year parks plan; council urged to review funding, priorities

Dave, a presenter for the park board, told the Boone City Council the board had spent years preparing an inventory-driven 10-year parks plan and that the total cost “if we were to do everything in the plan” is $70.3 million while stressing the presentation was informational and not an immediate request for funding.

The plan, Dave said, documents about 190 projects, of which 18 are described as "new initiatives" and the presenters cited a subtotal for those initiatives of $2,425,500. He emphasized the board does not expect the council to pay the full figure, and proposed a mix of strategies including grant applications through the Ames Economic Alliance, partnership with Downtown Boone, private fundraising, use of CIP and operational phasing.

Council members raised procedural concerns at the start after some members said they had received only shortened materials while the mayor was given a full booklet; one council member called that distribution “really disrespectful,” and presenters apologized and committed to provide corrected digital copies. Dave also acknowledged an editorial discrepancy between pages 9 and 11 (a $20,000 typo) that would be corrected in the digital packet.

The presentation walked through examples and park-level proposals: Lowell Park (boardwalk fundraising), Memorial Park (an accessible playground, added parking or possible purchase of the Legion building for parking), Cummings (infield rehabilitation and pickleball courts), McComb’s (bike/walking-trail extension and a fishing dock/pond) and upgrades at Gutteridge/Herman’s including full operable bathrooms. The plan also lists smaller operational items—benches, trash receptacles and equipment replacements—mixed with larger capital projects.

On the pool, council members asked about lifespan and filtration concerns; Dave said pools commonly have 30–35 year lifespans but that a deeper engineering assessment would be required to confirm the condition of the pool well and filtration systems. He noted the plan includes an idea for a “new pool fund” and that $4 million was presented as a conversation starter, not a projection that would cover a full replacement.

Speakers discussed prioritization and budget mechanics: council members emphasized that projects can only move forward through the CIP and annual budgeting process, and staff reminded the group that grant applications requiring a city match must be coordinated with the city so required drawdowns and reporting can be tracked. Several council members pressed for clearer year-by-year priorities; presenters said the plan’s year labels could be adjusted to align with the city’s fiscal-year CIP entries (they agreed year-one items should be mapped into the FY2028 CIP for review).

Presenters described the inventory work that informed project lists, including outreach that involved Iowa State University students who ran surveys, outreach events and contributed analysis at no cost to Boone. They also described equipment issues: many play sets are walled off or missing parts and some older items lack available replacement parts, making replacement more economical in some cases. For large timber-cleanup needs following storm damage, the presentation noted a cleanup estimate of well over $500,000 and suggested alternatives such as recruiting an AmeriCorps crew to dramatically lower immediate contractor costs.

The board asked the council to take the plan, study it and return with questions; council members agreed to consider the plan and to have staff enter proposed projects into the CIP process for FY2028 so priorities and funding implications can be weighed. A council member indicated the plan would be brought back to the council at the July 6 meeting. The meeting concluded after a motion to adjourn.