The Zionsville Parks and Recreation Dept. held a community open house June 29 at Zionsville Town Hall. The purpose of the event was to gather feedback from residents. The department also let individuals share suggestions for what they would want to see included in the next five-year master plan.
Supt. of Parks and Recreation Jarod Logsdon said the Dept. of Natural Resources requires an updated plan every five years. Logsdon said that the parks department has pretty much accomplished all of the goals in their previous plan, which was created in 2018.
“A lot of those construction projects you see right now are the result of that 2018 plan,” he said.
Those projects include the new Overley Worman Park and extensions to the Zionsville Big-4 Rail Trail.
“We are continuing to grow along with the community, and it’s our goal to keep green infrastructure and amenities spreading as Zionsville continues to grow as well,” Logsdon said.
The open house featured several stations that allowed residents to voice concerns and provide suggestions. One station gave attendees the opportunity to tell the department what programs and activities they had previously participated in. Another asked residents how safe they feel at Zionsville’s trails and parks.
At one station, “Challenges and Barriers,” residents were asked to show via red stickers what challenges keep them from taking full advantage of the parks and trails system. Many stickers were placed next to “Not enough park-to-park walking/biking connections.”
A similar station, which used orange stickers to denote a response, asked community members about what programs and activities they want to see added. “Additional nature and habitat focused programming” along with “More community events” were two popular selections.
Logsdon said that getting responses from the community is vital to the department.
“People are really just voicing what they want to see in our parks system, so that’s nice to have that feedback,” Logsdon said.
To learn more about the Zionsville Parks and Recreation Master Plan, visit reasite.mysocialpinpoint.com/zionsville-5-year-parks-master-plan-home.
