HomeMy WebLinkAboutLAKEVILLE PARKS AND RECREATIONLAKEVILLE PARKS AND RECREATION
TECHNOLOGY-DATA-INITIATIVES
PROPOSAL FOR PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD REVIEW AND SUPPORT
By Jim Storms - Advisory Board Member - 04/24/2017
Initiatives Justification/Rationale sources within this document below.
“Review of Your Agency’s Performance Against It’s Peers” – Kevin Roth NRPA – April 2017(attached)
“Enhancing Park and Library Experiences/A Deeper Dive into D ata” Dakota Cty-Spring 2017( attached)
I. Initiative 1- NRPA AGENCY PERFORMANCE REVIEW REPORT & NRPA PARK METRICS DATABASE
A. Generate/Print the 2017 NRPA Agency Performance Review report for advisory committee
review. (This is already done, View/print email-attachment. In the conclusion of this report
they state:
“We challenge all park and recreation professionals to enter their agency’s data in NRPA Park
Metrics so they can gain a more detailed analysis of their agency’s performance against its peers
throughout the United States. Linking the insights contained in this report and NRPA Park Metrics
with other NRPA reports and resources will arm all park and recreation professionals with the tools
needed to tell their agency’s story and to make the case for further investments in the future.”
B. Answer the 30 questions about Lakeville in the NRPA PARK METRICS-AGENCY PERFORMANCE
SURVEY database for analysis/comparison purposes(by end of May?). Review these 30
Questions attached or open the Excel Spreadsheet email-attachment. Following this entry,
update only questions needing it once per year(the current year can be rolled into the next
year)
C. Print/Generate reports from the NRPA METRICS-AGENCY PERFORMANCE SURVEY database for
analysis of Lakeville with other national, state or regional agencies.(end of 1st wk of June?).
(Look at data/report selection capability attached). Utilize relevant data supporting our
Parks and Recreation functions when needed on an ongoing basis as well as where beneficial
in the 10 year plan. (This could include Dome/Community Center supporting data).
II. Initiative 2- Investigate utilization of RecTrac software database (to generate a few short
quarterly program-season reports of programs, classes, and special events sorted by such
criteria as season, program types, age groups, and park/facility locations, as one line of basic
info per class including participant numbers). These would utilize existing software capabilities
at no additional cost (by end of September?)
III. Initiative 3- Ongoing creative ideas (Brainstorming?) for Technology Improvements
throughout the year. Examples might include:
A. An idea for leading a collaborative Web application that would hold a simplified version of
our seasonal programs together with those of Community Ed, Athletic Associations and ISD
194 school activities(Jeane’s idea). This could be a grant project(help from Judy?) that
would enable parents to quickly see activities across the community for children and family.
It would also help areas of overlap and possible areas of collaboration.
B. Review of a new concept of tracking participation in Pa rks called ECO-COUNTER. Could we
have a trial project of a handful of parks utilizing this concept? The people from this
company explained that Park/Rec Departments typically roll the cost of these devices into
CIP projects for new or renovation park projects. Take a look at their web page and
attachment below: http://www.eco-compteur.com/en/applications/parks-recreation
C. Use the NRPA Facility Market reports to better understand the population, trends and
market around an existing or potentially new park or facility, planning for development and
programs can be enhanced(See description attached below)
Review Your Agency’s Performance Against its Peers
By Kevin Roth|Posted on April 4, 2017
Kevin Roth is NRPA’s Vice President of Research.
Tags: Operations
This week, we released the 2017 NRPA Agency Performance Review , our annual report summarizing the
key findings and insights from Park Metrics. If this sounds familiar, it is because the Agency Performance
Review is the new name for the NRPA Field Report.
There is no simple set of standards for park and recreation agencies. What wo rks well for one agency may
not be best for your agency. Agencies serve differing populations, have differing missions and mandates,
and have access to differing levels and sources of funding. To discover what works best for your agency,
you need benchmark data to compare how your agency performs against similar peers.
That is where the 2017 NRPA Agency Performance Review comes in. No other resource provides park and
recreation professionals and other key stakeholders with a wealth of valuable benchmarks an d insights that
inform on the state of the industry. These insights help:
1. Guide park and recreation professionals in evaluating the performance of their agencies. Do their
agencies provide as much open space, recreation opportunities and programming as the ir peers? Is
the agency properly staffed or sufficiently funded?
2. Make informed decisions on the optimal set of service and facility offerings based on the
demographics and, therefore, the needs of a specific community while also providing comparative
agency data from other communities/agencies.
3. Show the prevalence of expanded activities and offerings at agencies throughout the nation. This
report demonstrates to policymakers, key stakeholders, the media and the general public the full
breadth of service offerings and responsibilities of park and recreation departments throughout the
United States.
The 2017 NRPA Agency Performance Review features 21 graphics of top-line data findings and analysis
explaining each metrics’ importance, broken into six areas of focus:
• Park facilities
• Programming
• Responsibilities of Park and Recreation Agencies
• Staffing
• Budget
• Agency Funding
Sample of 6 of 21 national performance metrics from Agency Performance Review Report
shown attached directly below
We know that park and recreation agencies are as diverse as the communities they serve. There is no one -
size-fits-all formula as to how park and recreation professionals meet their critical shared mission: to be
leaders in conservation, health and wellness, and social equity by creating healthier communities and
environments for all people.
That is why beyond the report, we also have created interactive reporting tools that allow you allow you to
drill into the data. These interactive reporting tools allow you to filter all 21 sets of metrics by jurisdiction
population, population density, agency budget, agency type, staff size, the number of parks main tained, and
geographic region.
Even better, you also have the option to customize the data further to generate metrics from agencies
similar to yours. By entering your agency’s Park Metrics data through a 30 question survey, you can run
customized performance reports that place your agency’s data right next to that of its peers. Even though
the2017 NRPA Agency Performance Review is now out, it is never too late to enter your agency’s data to
take advantage of everything Park Metrics has to offer.
We are excited to bring the 2017 NRPA Agency Performance Review and accompanying interactive tools to
park and recreation professionals. This is the most comprehensive set of benchmarking resources for the
park and recreation industry, and it only happens because of the agencies who participate in Park Metrics. If
your agency is one of the many that already has entered its 2016 agency performance data, thank you. If
you have not, it is not too late. Log in to get started.
If you need assistance with your login or entering your data, please contact Greg Manns or Daniel Espada.
Kevin Roth is NRPA’s Vice President of Research.
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