THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 15, 1995 TAG: 9502150455
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
City officials and advisers discussing the future of local parks and recreation tonight will have some help - the opinions of nearly 1,700 residents.
Comments and statistics from a survey distributed late last year will help officials complete a master plan outlining the Parks and Recreation Department's needs and goals for the coming years.
Officials will discuss the surveys for the first time tonight at a meeting of the Recreation Advisory Committee.
The surveys, which were mailed to city residents with utility bills and delivered to Pasquotank and Camden county sites, are part of an effort being spearheaded by Wilmington consultant Howard T. Capps.
Elizabeth City is paying about $14,000 for Capps' development of the master plan, which was approved by the city council last spring when council members decided they needed some direction before approving major construction for the department.
Many of the survey results are similar to what about 50 residents told officials during two public brainstorming meetings in November. Among the priorities is a major fitness-wellness center, which nearly two-thirds of survey respondents said they would use.
More than a thousand residents also want a system of jogging, biking and nature trails. And comments on many surveys indicated support for a teen center, Parks and Recreation Director Jim Overman said Tuesday.
City council members had emphasized the need for teen activities during early discussions of the master plan. They were echoed by many participants in the public meetings on recreation needs.
``I think it's gone very well,'' Capps said of the planning process. ``I was real pleased with the number of responsees we had to the questionnaires.
``It's now just a matter . . . of starting to pull some things together.''
Capps and Overman expect to visit some possible sites for new recreation facilities today. Overman said he was especially interested in the area where the proposed U.S. 17 bypass and possible connectors will be constructed.
Overman hopes to ``somehow tie in with that and maybe get some good public access along one of those corridors'' he said.
Officials are working to complete the plan by the end of March, although Overman said planning was a couple of weeks behind schedule. He said he wants the information to help back up any requests he may make of the council this budgeting season.
``I'm not sure that there's going to be a lot of money in the coming year's budget,'' Overman said. ``We're not going to be able to make a lot of improvements.''
Another possibility for funding could come from a state trust fund for parks set up last year. The fund has little money to distribute this year, but Overman said has asked the area's local governments to push for full funding, which could free up some $2 million statewide for local recreation projects. Camden County is applying for some money from the state fund this year.
Overman also said he has talked with some YMCA officials who may be interested in opening a center in the area, which would reduce some of the city's needs. by CNB