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HUG16015-Parks, Trails, and Open Space DRAFT Chapter 17 08/16/17 Parks and Trails Trends In addition to feedback from the Public and the Parks Commission, the planning process is also informed by best practices in the industry for recreation trends, user needs, and accessibility. Resources from the national, state and regional level provide context and data for parks planning in 2040. National Trends The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) publishes standards to help communities in planning, acquisition, and development of park and open space. The NRPA has been collecting data -Accessibility for all types of users on trials and in parks. Park and Recreation Trends in Minnesota Since 2008 Minnesota and the Region have seen demographic changes related to age and to ethnicity, and an increasing emphasis on healthy communities. Policies and data from the state, regional, and county levels provide context for trends and are tools that Federal and State Agencies use when reviewing funding requests. The findings and trends from key agencies inform the goals and policies of this document as follows: The Minnesota Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP). Minnesota Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan 2014-2018 (SCORP) provides an overview of outdoor recreation issues facing Minnesota and it describes policies and funding mechanisms to address those issues. The 2014-2018 SCORP notes a relatively recent decline in support and interest in outdoor recreation. There are several reasons for this including an increasingly urbanized population; young adults and their children are less involved with nature-based recreation than older adults and; nature-based recreation is more popular among white, non-Hispanic populations, which is not growing at the same rate as the non-white population. SCORP identifies four strategic directions to address the changing demand for outdoor recreation. They are summarized in this report as follows: 1. Connect people to the outdoors. The report emphasizes creating a welcoming environment through designing high quality facilities and programming that can be used by all ages and abilities, and by creating comprehensive marketing strategies and programming that caters to in-experienced users as well as the seasoned user and partnerships with organizations that serve non-white populations. 2. Acquire Land, Create Opportunities. The strategic direction focuses on acquiring land and developing trails in more densely populated areas and rapidly growing areas and near high quality natural resource areas. 3. Take care of what we have. Reinvest in existing infrastructure and ensure that funding is available to maintain facilities throughout their useful life. Maintain the quality of natural resource areas and restore natural communities that have been degraded or impacted by development activities. 4. Coordinate among partners. Develop and maintain a comprehensive database and web site and facilitate multi-jurisdictional and agency partnerships and funding. As Hugo’s population ages and as the community grows, there is opportunity to involve new and younger residents in parks programs and outdoor recreation. Regional Parks System Visitor Study Report. In 2016, the Metropolitan Council administered a survey to regional park and trail visitors to provide benchmark measurement of regional park and trail visitor experiences in terms of: 1. Reasons for visiting and activity participation 2. Frequency and length of visits 3. Travel distances and modes of transportation 4. Group sizes 5. Quality of facilities, services and recreation opportunities and sense of safety 6. Information behavior The report authors surveyed 5,459 people including 389 people from Washington County.