Program Guide - Burlington Parks and Recreation

from the director
4
from the director
Spring & Summer are upon us, Burlington!
Refresh in the beauty of the season – the birds chirping, the
trees, flowers and shrubs blooming, the warming waters
lapping the shore, people and animals emerging from their
winter dens.
As we celebrate the things that are and will become, this is a
perfect time to reflect on the mission and values of the Burlington
Parks & Recreation Department, which incorporates five primary
concepts. Our Department’s role is to acquire, develop, and
maintain a comprehensive parks system offering a broad
spectrum of built facilities, open spaces, and community gardens;
manage public trees along streets and within parks; provide
quality, affordable recreation programs designed to meet the
needs of our community and its visitors, and to ensure fun and
safety in the Burlington Harbor and the lakefront. The fifth and
final concept is to promote the over-arching values to ensure
that we bring enhancement to Burlington residents’ and visitors’
quality of life. We make Burlington better through our staffs’
commitment to service, excellence, and integrity!
Effort is not in short supply and we follow through on our
commitments every day. Here are some of the ways how:
First, we work side by side with other City departments, our
commissions, boards, and committees, residents and visitors to
problem-solve on issues important to all of us. A good example
of this cooperation is the recently adopted and inclusive Penny
For Parks project intake, prioritization, and planning process
which ensures that park improvement projects (that are important
to neighborhoods), are accepted, rated and considered within
a defined time period each year and that there’s appropriate
community discussion before action. A second demonstration
of our commitment is the Plan BTV project, in which the
Department assisted in completing a parks inventory and
asset mapping project within the downtown and waterfront
area, both to aid the planning initiative of the City and to kickstart
our own Department’s thinking about master planning
and asset management and maintenance. Consistency of this
Commitment & Vision
We are dedicated to serving our customers.
approach is evident by the establishment of several citizen
advisory committees to review off-leash opportunities, skate park
operations and special events.
By detailing these and other sound management practices
and processes the Department is also better positioned to
compete for national funding and grants. The City’s designation
as a Tree City USA (17th year) and other recognition by the US
Forest Service has resulted in funding for the development of
management tools that help to gain efficiencies and to achieve
goals identified through the Climate Action Plan and the Urban
Forestry Master Plan. On the recreational front, establishing a Bike
Path Task Force has created other opportunities to shape the
updated 2012 Feasibility Study and to put together the necessary
design, planning, construction documents to deliver funding
proposals and to achieve successful rehabilitation of the Path
beginning this year. In the meantime, we’re working closely with
Federal, State and local partners to rehabilitate the path to better
than pre-flood condition and retain its world class appeal.
And finally, we’re happy to announce our seasonal recreation
program line-up, serving an estimated 600,000 people annually!
We believe it brings together the energy of our dedicated staff
with the needs of the community. We’re also eager share with our
community standard comprehensive employee recruitment and
training program to help ensure that participants receive the best
service possible whether you participate in a program, play in a
park, set sail from our docks, or wander through our woods.
We thank you for your help in working together with us to provide
everything that Burlington deserves in building an excellent city
parks system!
We strive for excellence. We work with integrity.
As an essential service,
we make Burlington better!
Burlington Parks & Recreation Programs | SPRing • SummeR 2012
mari Steinbach, cPrP, mPA
Director