CLEVELAND — Mayor Justin Bibb announced that the city has selected the landscape architecture firm OLIN as the prime consultant for the development of its Parks & Recreation Master Plan.
This is the first plan of its kind in the city’s history and will look into Cleveland’s Neighborhood Resource and Recreation Centers (NRRCs), parks, pools, playgrounds and similar spaces. The quantity and quality of programs provided will also be examined.
The city currently operates 179 parks and recreation sites, including 155 city parks, 23 recreation centers, and 1 golf course, totaling nearly 1,760 acres. The sites include 111 baseball fields, 108 playgrounds, 88 basketball courts, 70 tennis courts, 40 indoor or outdoor swimming pools, and hundreds of other public amenities and programs.
The 15-year plan will create a roadmap to ensure just and fair capital investment in parks and recreation, according to the news release. The plan will aim to meet the needs of city residents, community groups and other stakeholders and provide equitable connections to parks and rec activities.
“This is an incredible opportunity to revitalize public spaces in every neighborhood across our city,” said Bibb. “This plan is all about access and equity, removing barriers, building community, and creating places and experiences that enrich peoples’ lives.”
OLIN is a nationally and internationally recognized studio with more than 40 years of experience with parks and recreation system planning and designing. Its projects include the campus and gardens at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, a 25-year master plan to transform the post-industrial land along Philadelphia’s Delaware River, the award-winning 11th Street Bridge Park in Washington, D.C. and the parks master plan for Oklahoma City.
OLIN was behind the Eastman Reading Garden at the Cleveland Public Library, and the plaza and green space surrounding the Anthony J. Celebrezze Federal Building.
The planning process for the latest project begins Friday, May 5, and will have three phases. It is expected for it to take 18 months to complete.
There will be three phases in the plan. The first phase will involve an inclusive community needs assessment to identify the current future parks and rec needs of Cleveland residents, community groups and stakeholders over the next 15 years.
In the second phase, a long-range plan will be created to reconcile existing conditions with the assessment from phase one. In the third phase, a strategic plan will be created to outline the best methods to finance and implement the plan.
“We look forward to engaging with residents and the community as we embark on this planning process,” said MOCAP Director James D. DeRosa. “My team is excited to get started and we expect for public engagement opportunities and other ways to get involved with the master plan to be announced this summer.”
