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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.4 Parks&RecMasterPlan CITY CLERK File # 920-30 AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: October 7, 2003 SUBJECT: Parks and Recreation Master Plan Update Report Diane Lowart, Parks & Community Services Director ATTACHMENTS: 1. Existing Park Inventory 2. Proposed Parks By Planning Area 3. Comparison of Existing and Proposed Park Acreage by Planning Area 4. Park Facility Plan and Potential Park Sites Map 5. Sports Park Option RECOMMENDATION: 1. Approve size and location of the 60-acre sports park on the Lin Property 2. Maintain 10.6 acres of community park on the Jordan Property at this time. 3. Provide direction to Staff on preferred alternative park sites to alleviate the park deficiency at build-out of the City FINANCIAL STATEMENT: None DESCRIPTION: The City of Dublin Parks and Recreation Master Plan w~is adopted in July 1994. The Master Plan establishes goals, long-term policies and standards to guide the City of Dublin in the acquisition, development and management of Dublin's Park and Recreation facilities. An update of the 1994 Master Plan is currently underway. The Master Plan Update will consider revised population and development projections and the impact on Dublin's proposed park system and recreation facilities. An administrative draft of the Parks and Recreation Master Plan Update has been completed for in-house review. However, in order to finalize the document, it is necessary to resolve the amount and location of park acreage to serve the residents at build-out of the City. Further it is necessary to resolve the outstanding issue of the size and location of the Sports Park previously shown in the Master Plan as 80+ acres adjacent to Fallon Road. PARK SYSTEM The Parks and Recreation Master Plan establishes a standard of 5.0 acres of public park per 1000 residents. Of this amount 3.5 acres per 1000 residents is designated community park and 1.5 acres per 1000 residents is designated neighborhood park. Community parks meet community-wide recreation needs while neighborhood parks meet the local recreation needs of the neighborhood. Some of the existing'community parks in Dublin include the Dublin Sports Grounds, Dublin Swim Center, Shannon COPIES TO: G:\COUNCIL~Agenda Statements~2003\l 0-7 PRMP UPDATE.doc Parks and Community Services Commission Dublin Ranch/EDPOA ITEM NO. ~ Park and Community Center and Emerald Glen Park. Neighborhood parks include Kolb Park, Alamo Creek Park, and Ted Fairfield Park, to name a few. The projected build-out population for the City of Dublin that is being used for the Parks and Recreation Master Plan Update is 59,900. This figure was supplied by the City's Community Development Department and includes the actual population as of January 1, 2002 (excluding group quarters) and the projected population including infill development of the primary planning area and development of the eastern and western planning areas. Based on the projected population of 59,900 the park system at build-out of the City should total 299.5 acres with 209.7 acres of community parks and 89.8 acres of neighborhood parks (based on the established standard). Existing Park Inventotw As shown on Attachment 1, there are currently 150 acres of neighborhood, school and community parks in Dublin. Based on the current population of 30,322 (which does not include group quarters population) and the standard of 5 acres per 1000 residents, there is an existing shortfall of 1.6 acres of developed parkland as shown in Table 1 below. Table 1 Existin Park Neighborhood Parks 49.2 0 9.8 59.0 45.5 13.5 Community Parks 61.0 0 30.0 91.0 106.1 -15.1 Total 110.2 0 39.8 150.0 151.6 -1.6 In an ongoing effort to keep pace with new development, 39.8 acres of developed parkland has been added to the park inventory in the past three years. Proposed Future Parks The pending and proposed land use and development plans for the build out of eastern and western Dublin identify an additional 46.8 acres of neighborhood park and 97.5 acres of community park for a total of 144.3 additional acres of parkland (Attachment 2). This results in a shortfall of 5.2 acres of parkland at build-out of the City. Based on the City standard of 3.5 acres for community parks and 1.5 acres for neighborhood parks, there is actually a surplus of neighborhood park in the amount of 16 acres and a deficit of community park in the amount of 21.2 acres as shown in Table 2 below. Table 2 Com Neighborhood Parks 59.0 46.8 105.8 89.8 16.0 Community Parks 91.0 97.5 188.5 209.7 -21.2 Total 150.0 144.3 294.3 299.5 -5.2 A detailed comparison of the existing and proposed park acreage by planning area is Attachment 3. Attachment 4 is the Park Facility Plan that shows the location of existing parks and the approximate location of proposed parks. Park System Deficiencies There are a number of reasons why there is a deficit of parkland at build out of the City. Development of City under Alameda County Prior to incorporation of the City, all plans for development were processed by Alameda County. Under the County, inadequate land was set aside for parks. Although the City has made strides in identifying and develOping land in' the primary planning area for neighborhood parks, there has been limited opportunity to develop land for community parks in the primary planning area of the City (i.e. the generally built out areas outside of Eastern Dublin). Additional parkland was created in the primary planning area through a joint use agreement with the Dublin Unified School District Whereby the City and the District worked cooperatively on improvements to school grounds to increase the inventory of parkland within the City. However, for future development~ the City does not wish to be required to utilize school property to achieve the minimum park acreage standards. Of the 150 acres of existing parkland, 43.6 acres are school parks. Gross versus Net Acres in Planning Documents The Eastern Dublin General Plan Amendment and Specific Plan and the Schaefer Ranch General Plan Amendment (for western Dublin) show land use in gross acres, i.e. raw land without street and related infrastructure improvements. Once these improvements are incorporated into land plans, the land uses are reduced by as much as 25%. As part of the master plan update, the acreage of parks that have yet to be developed has been adjusted by this factor. o Loss of Community Parkland in Eastern Dublin The Eastern Dublin General Plan Amendment and Specific Plan (EDGPA/SP) included a 46.1- acre community park in the northern area of the plan. It has since been determined by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that due to environmental constraints, i.e. habitat for rare and endangered species, this park can no longer be developed as originally planned. Additionally, Emerald Glen Park, originally identified in the EFGPA/SP as 56.3 gross acres, was reduced to 48.2 net acres. Potential Park Sites In order to address the deficit in parkland, Staff has identified potential park sites as shown in Attachment 4 and described below. Dublin Square Shopping Center (4.2 acres) - Community Park Site This site is owned by the Berkeley Land Company and is presently not for sale. However, its proximity to the Dublin Heritage Center provides an ideal opportunity to expand the City's historic holdings. Acquisition and development of this site would help to offset the deficit in community parks. Dublin Unified School District Offices (4.4 acres) - Neighborhood Park Site This site is adjacent to Kolb Park and would provide an opportunity to expand the park should the District find the need to relocate its District Offices to a larger site. o Southem Pacific Right-of-Way (up to 18.9 acres) - Neighborhood/Community Park Site This site is adjacent to the Iron Horse Trail from the Contra Costa County/Alameda County line to just beyond Amador Valley Boulevard. The land could serve as a special use park, providing a buffer between adjacent residential units and the Iron Horse Trail with pockets of active recreational uses. Sees Candy Property (1.2 acres) - Neighborhood Square This site is in the downtown area and could be developed into a small village square or green with passive recreational uses. Eastern Dublin Property Owners (EDPO) Annexation Area (5.2 acres) - Community Park A 10.6-acre community park is presently shown on the Jordan property. This alternative would increase the park by 5.2 acres (the amount of the deficit) and relocate it to a 15.8-acre site within the EDPO Annexation Area. This area is bordered by Fallon Road to the west, the City's Sphere of Influence boundary to the east and north, and 1-580 to the south. SPORTS PARK The Eastern Dublin General Plan Amendment and Specific Plan designated land for an 80.6-aCre sports park adjacent to Fallon Road. This park spanned the lands of two property owners, the Lin Family/Dublin Ranch (66.5 acres) and the Jordan Family (14.1 acres). In March 1999 the City entered into a Development Agreement (DA) with the Lin Family for the Dublin Ranch Project. As part of the DA, it was agreed that the sports park would be 68 usable and contiguous acres (as opposed to 80.6 acres). The DA required the Lin's to convey 52 acres of usable parkland for the sports park to the City. The balance of the sports park was shown on the Jordan property. As there was some uncertainty regarding the potential to use the land on the Jordan property for the sports park, it was further agreed in the DA that 13 additional acres would be tentatively set aside for potential park until the City determined that whether it had 68 contiguous acres available for the sports park. At that time, the City anticipated that it would have adequate community park acreage north of Dublin Ranch, but as discussed previously, the acreage to the north can no longer be developed for park purposes. Since the negotiation of the DA, an environmental survey of the Jordan property was commissioned by the City in order to determine the presence of rare and endangered species that would limit the development potential of this property for a park. The preliminary survey indicated that there are a number of environmentallY sensitive areas on the property thus limiting its use for parkland. This also resulted in a new alignment for Fallon Road that bypassed the Jordan property and bisected the original park site. The Lin Family has proposed to dedicate the 52 acres required of the DA along with 8 additional acres on their property resulting in a 60-acre sports park. Acceptance by the City of this proposal would result in 60-acre sports park, rather than the 68-acre sports park, that was discussed the DA. Attachment 5 is the proposed sports park option. As proposed, the sports park is in generally the same area where it was originally shown in the General Plan except it is now only on the Lin property. The park is bordered by Gleason Drive on the north, Fallon Road on the East, Central Parkway on the South and the proposed Lockhart Lane on the West. The Eastern Dublin General Plan Amendment and Specific Plan identifies 14.1 acres (10.6 net acres) of community park on the Jordan property. Although it can no longer be developed contiguous to the sports park on the Lin property due to the Fallon Road alignment, Staff recommends that this park acreage continue to be shown on the Jordan property. This acreage could be moved to another location on the Jordan property or to another property or properties in the Eastern Dublin Property Owners Annexation Area to provide approximately 10 acres of contiguous community park elsewhere in Eastern Dublin. As planning of this area is in the early stages, relocating the park acreage at this time would have less of an impact on the overall development plan then if it were contemplated at a later date. This would result in a 60-acre sports park on the Lin property and a 10.6-acre community park on the Jordan property (or another property in the annexation area). CONCLUSION The goal of the Parks and Recreation Master Plan as well as the Eastern Dublin General Plan Amendment and Specifid Plan is to insure that upon buildout of the City the standards established by these documents are fulfilled. While there are deficiencies in the park system that were in place upon incorporation of the City, through careful planning, steps be taken to insure that these deficiencies do not continue. In order to continue to provide a quality of life to Dublin residents that is competitive with other Tri-Valley communities, it is necessary that the parks that are currently identified in the planning documents be built as proposed and that alternative park locations are identified. The Parks and Community Services Commission considered the potential park alternatives to alleviate the deficiency at build-out as well as the size and location of the Sports Park at a special meeting September 29, 2003. By a unanimous vote, the Commission supported the proposed 60-acre sports park on the Lin property and the 10.6-acre community park on the Jordan property. Additionally, the Commission prioritized the alternative park sites to alleviate the deficiency at build-out as follows: 1. Southern Pacific Right-of Way 2. Dublin Square Shopping Center 3. Sees Candy Property 4. Dublin Unified School District Offices 5. Eastern Dublin Property Owners (EDPO) Annexation Area Therefore it is recommended that the City Council review the data presented herein and take the following action: 1. Approve size and location of the 60-acre sports park on the Lin property; 2. Maintain 10.6 acres of community park on the Jordan property at this time; 3. Provide direction to Staff on preferred alternative park sites to alleviate the park deficiency at build-out of the City. EXISTING PARK INVENTORY NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS Primary Planning Area Alamo Creek Park Dolan Park Kolb Park Mape Memorial Park Stagecoach Park Subtotal School Parks Dublin Elementary Frederiksen Elementary Murray Elementary Nielsen Elementary Subtotal Eastern Dublin Ted Fairfield Park Bray Commons Subtotal TOTAL NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS ACRES 5.3 4.9 4.9 2.6 0.9 18.6 8.8 7.8 8.6 5.4 30.6 5 4.8 9.8 59 COMMUNITY PARKS Primary Planning Area School Parks Eastern Dublin Dougherty Hills Dublin Sports Grounds/Civic Center Dublin Swim Center Dublin Heritage Center Senior Center Shannon Park Subtotal Dublin High School Wells MiddleNalley High School Subtotal Emerald Glen Park - Phase I Emerald Glen Park - Phase II Subtotal TOTAL COMMUNITY PARKS ACRES 4 25.6 3.6 3.6 1.5 9.7 48 5.4 7.6 13 26.1 3.9 30 91 150 TOTAL EXISTING PARK INVENTORY ATTACHMENT 1 PROPOSED PARKS BY PLANNING AREA NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS Primary Planning Area School Parks Eastern Dublin Western Dublin None None Dublin Ranch (Area B, F, G) 3 Neighborhood Squares/1 Neighborhood Park Dublin Ranch North (Wallis Property) 1 Neighborhood Square/2 Neighborhood Parks Eastern Dublin Property Owners 1 Neighborhood Square/4 Neighborhood Parks Subtotal Schaefer Ranch 2 Neighborhood Parks TOTAL NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS ACRES 0 0 9.2 10.5 19.7 39.4 7.4 46.8 COMMUNITY PARKS Primary Planning Area School Parks Eastern Dublin Western Dublin None None Emerald Glen Park - Balance Sports Park (Dublin Ranch property) *Sports Park (Jordan property) Transit Center Park Subtotal None ACRES 0 18.2 6O 10.6 8.7 97.5 0 TOTAL COMMUNITY PARKS 97.5 TOTAL PROPOSED PARKS 144.3 *Assumes that acreage will be relocated either on Jordan property or within EDPOA if it is determined that the current location can not be developed due to environmental constraints. ATTACHMENT 2 COMPARISON OF EXISTING AND PROPOSED PARK ACREAGE BY PLANNING AREA Neighborhood Parks Primary Planning Area Eastern Dublin Western Dublin TOTAL Existing Proposed Total Required at Buildout 49.2 0 49.2 36.5 9.8 39.4 49.2 51.1 0 7.4 7.4 2.2 59 46.8 105.8 89.8 Difference 12.7 -1.9 5.2 16 Community Parks Primary Planning Area Eastern Dublin Western Dublin TOTAL Existing . Proposed 61 0 30 97.5 0 0 91 150 Total Required Difference at Buildout 61 85.3 -24,3 127.5 119,2 8.3 0 5.2 -5.2 97.5 188,5 209.7 -21.2 -5.2 TOTAL PARK ACREAGE 44.3 294.3 299.5 ATTACHMENT 3 o~ I'A~I~AY P, ANCJ~ MH 5~be Ar~a I= I~a~f./Commund:y Park Pro?osai ~ ATTACHMENT 5 0 0 ~0 " o × m uJ