I got an email this week from Brad Behrens, Environmental Technologist with Rice County Environmental Services (Planning and Zoning Dept), about their current Rice County Parks, Recreation & Open Space Survey.
It’s only a two-pager and be completed in less than 5 minutes, so take it! (Text below is from this news item):
Rice County is in the process of updating the Rice County Comprehensive Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan. The Plan will include a full assessment of Rice County Parks as well as an inventory of all existing park and recreation opportunities in all of Rice County (incorporated areas as well as unincorporated areas).
The plan will also include the development of policies to assure park and trail access, encourage use of parks and trails for physical activity, provide information about facilities to all residents and provide for integration of county-owned parks and trails with other recreational facilities in Rice County. This plan will address three questions: Where are we now? Where should we go? And how do we get there?
As a part of this plan update process, Rice County would like to hear from people who live and work in Rice County as to their park usage and recreational needs. A survey has been developed to gather information that will be beneficial in guiding the development of the comprehensive parks, recreation and open space plan.
There was an open house on the draft of the Rice County Comprehensive Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan back in Sept.
I missed it and when I checked yesterday, the draft was not yet posted online. So I wrote to Julie Runkel, Environmental Services Director, to inquire. She replied:
Still no draft posted. Still no updated website. I inquired a week ago but no response yet.
I spoke today to Julie Runkel, Planning & Zoning Director for Rice County. She said the Rice County Comprehensive Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan is due to go to the Board in May for the scheduling of public hearings in June.
Mark your calendar for 7 pm on June 7.
In yesterday’s Fbo Daily News: Rice County’s open space plan sets course for future
I don’t see a Draft copy of the parks plan on the Rice County website. And I don’t see any announcement for online public input. I’ll see what I can find out.
The plan is now linked from Rice County Parks page.
The big PDF: Rice County Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan 2012-2022
There is evidently not going to be any online forum. Public comment can be sent to: RCPlanningZoning@co.rice.mn.us
For those of you who are mountain bikers and who might attend the public hearing or who want to submit a formal public comment, consider emphasizing:
* how parks around the state (eg, Dakota County, Three Rivers, the DNR) are building erosion-resistant, single-purpose, one way, flow trails for mountain biking. One problem with the Draft is that it talks about multi-use trails for hiking and biking. That won’t work for mountain biking.
* that these types of mountain bike trails PREVENT unauthorized trails that do environmental damage
* that Rice County now has two bike clubs with enough members interested in mountain biking (Faribault Flyers, Cannon Valley Velo Club) that the County could develop a formal partnership to help build, maintain, and police the mtb trails