HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 9625 INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 9625
To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 4, 2014
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SUBJECT: FORT WORTH NATURE CENTER & REFUGE TEN-YEAR REVIEW
rF OF 2003 STRATEGIC MASTER PLAN
The purpose of this Informal Report is to apprise the City Council of the Parks and
Community Services Department's (PACSD) planned review and update of the Nature
Center & Refuge's (Nature Center) 2003 Strategic Master Plan. This ten-year administrative
review and status update will occur during FY2014. Beginning in FY2015, update reviews
will be scheduled to occur in five year cycles i.e. 2020, 2025, etc.
Background
On June 17, 2003, the City Council adopted "Preserving Native Texas: A Master Plan for
the Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge" (M&C G-13998) and added the plan as an
amendment to the Park, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan and the City's
Comprehensive Plan. The adoption culminated 18 months of work of a Mayor-appointed
citizen Steering Committee, the MESA Design Group and City staff. The Strategic Master
Plan was established as a guide to address future management, operation, programming
and development of the Nature Center including $67M (in 2003 dollars) for land acquisition
and new and upgraded infrastructure spread out over 40 years.
Expected Outcomes
The intent of the FY2014 review is to provide an administrative update, not to suggest any
material changes to the plan. In the ten years since its original adoption, a number of
conditions have changed that may have a positive, neutral or negative impact on the ability
of the City to fulfill the various recommendations. For example, the entry gate staffing and
fee collection program was successfully implemented in April 2006 and purchase of private
properties continue in the Lakeland Addition within the Nature Center's boundaries as
recommended in the plan. Another example is that in 2003 mineral extraction in the Barnett
Shale was not yet underway so the possibility of gaining a new revenue stream coupled with
the overarching need to protect park resources was not addressed. Upon completion the
review document will be appended to the original plan, and staff will continue to make these
reviews on a five-year basis going forward. (This is like in the 1St paragraph)
Nature Center staff shared the planned review and status update process with the Board of
Directors of the Friends of the FW Nature Center and Refuge at their regular monthly
meeting on September 12, 2013. In addition, staff presented an overview of this process to
the Parks and Community Services Advisory Board as an Information Item at the Board's
December 18, 2013 meeting.
ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS
INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 9625
To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 4, 2014
`�` Page 2 of 2
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SUBJECT: FORT WORTH NATURE CENTER & REFUGE TEN-YEAR REVIEW
rF OF 2003 STRATEGIC MASTER PLAN
Review Schedule and Process
The following provides an outline of milestones and deliverables for the plan update.
Phase One — Launch Update Process (October-December 2013)
Phase Two — Information Gathering (January — March 2014)
Phase Three — Report Production (April — June 2014)
Phase Four— Updated Report Presentation and Distribution (July— September 2014)
This presentation and distribution phase will include reviews by the Friends of the Nature
Center and Refuge and the Parks and Community Services Advisory Board in the fourth
quarter. Pending action by the Park Board, it is anticipated that an Informal Report will be
presented to the City Council in September 2014.
Should you have any questions regarding this report please contact Richard Zavala, Parks and
Community Services Director at 817-392-5704.
Tom Higgins
City Manager
ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS