Sheep County Parks Master Management Plan

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Allegheny County Parks Master Management Plan
This Master Management Plan is a an enormous document for all the functions of the Allegheny County Parks. It addresses the need for a financially sustainable park system with a long-term strategy that strikes a balance between development and preservation while using the resources effectively and efficiently. This document helps establish a clear vision and key principles that inform the decisions necessary to manage both the active use and conservation areas in the parks. The first plan was established in 1977. The current plan initially began in February 2000 and relied heavily on input from the residents of Allegheny County. This final plan was completed in 2002. The plan is a little out …show more content…

Policy direction in developing the plan has been provided by a dual citizens committee. Chaired by Senator Tim Murphy, the parks 2000 Committee is comprised of representatives of a variety of civic, non-profit, business, and recreational interests in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. The Parks Advisory Board is comprised of representatives of the communities adjacent to the county parks.
Inventory & Analysis Phases
In this phase, background information on park facilities, programs, and operations; natural and cultural resources; and other topics relevant to the parks was collected and evaluated. Issues important to the future of the parks were identified through analysis of the background information, interviews of people with specific knowledge of or stake in the parks, and input received from a series of five public meetings conducted in April 2000. Finally, the recreational needs of park users were evaluated using a variety of measures, including a mail survey of a cross- section of Allegheny County residents.
Mission Statement, Recommendations, & Master Plan …show more content…

A preliminary version of the mission was prepared in June 2000. With recommendations the potential approaches to addressing the issues identified in the inventory and analysis and needs assessment were formulated as a basis for evaluating options for the future of the park system. This began with a series of five public meeting conducted in November 2000 to present the results of the inventory and analysis and to gain input from residents regarding what they perceive as priorities for the parks system as a whole. In the master plan phase, the recommendations and options from the previous phases were developed into the full Comprehensive Master Plan. A third round of public meetings were conducted on the Draft, after which the plan was adopted by County.
Two key issues addressed in this plan are maintenance and promoting and maintaining native plant species. Dealing with aging structures is nothing new throughout parks. Within, the last five years, the parks have been getting grants from the RK Mellon Association and from the Regional Asset District (RAD) to help out with these problems. RK Mellon, within the last three years have donated close to one million dollars to help support Allegheny County Parks. The Public Works Department takes care of all the maintenance throughout the nine county

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