Parks Budget Survey
The 2011 Budget Survey is closed. We are no longer collections responses.
The survey is being left up only as a public exercise.
Spokane County Parks and Recreation would like your help in prioritizing the services we provide you! In recent years, the Parks budget has been and continues to be impacted by sluggish economic conditions. Your input is crucial to the decisions we make in the coming years as we continue to work with less funding while striving to provide the services the public desires the most.
Spokane County's General Fund supports a variety of Parks operations. Those operations include: running family aquatic facilities, maintaining community and regional parks, capital improvements to existing parks (i.e. construction of playgrounds, restrooms, pathways, etc.) management of park usage, special events, and customer service. The golf courses, recreation programs, and Conservation Futures Program are funded by other means.
Over the past two years, the general fund has been shrinking, and it is no surprise that the allocation for Parks funding has been diminishing as well, with additional reductions anticipated. Your input is more important than ever!
2. Funding Exercise
Funding Exercise: You have been given $128.00 to spend on general fund park operations (as opposed to self-sustaining operations such as golf courses). The first $75.00 must be spent on fixed costs. Please drag the 14 items below to form your top-to-bottom priority list for the remaining. Note that you can save $3 by moving the "Utilize Volunteer Assistance" item to the top of your list. Items will turn red when you don't have enough money left for them.
Examples of fixed costs include: vehicle and building repair, utilities, fuel, water testing, administration, road and parking maintenance, contractual obligations such as the Centennial Trail, etc.
- 1.Open / Operate Northside Family Aquatic Facility ($10)
- 2.Open / Operate Southside Family Aquatic Facility ($9)
- 3.Lifeguard Services - Liberty Lake Regional Park ($1)
- 4.Lifeguard Services - Fish Lake Regional Park ($2)
- 5.Lifeguard Services - Bear Lake Regional Park ($2)
- 6.Trash receptacles / Garbage removal 6/1-9/15 ($9)
- 7.Restrooms opened, cleaned, maintained 6/1-9/15 ($13)
- 8.Lawn care, weed control, irrigation, mowing ($22)
- 9.Lawn fertilizing and aerating ($5)
- 10.Private security to reduce vandalism 6/1-9/15 ($3)
- 11.Snow removal in parking lots ($2)
- 12.Open/close gated parks daily 6/1-9/15 ($3)
- 13.Provide services 4/15-10/15 instead of 6/1-9/15 ($6)
- 14.Utilize volunteer assistance to offset maintenance operations (-$3)
Question 2 Instructions
Please prioritize all services by using your mouse to click, drag and order the items in the list. Services in green can be paid for by your budget decisions. Services in red will be cut from the budget and therefore will not be provided to the public.
Your final budget will be submitted along with your survey as your opinion of the importance of these services. Have fun, and make every dollar count!
Your Service Budget Total
3. How would you rate the importance of well-maintained parks in your community?
4. Would you pay an additional property tax each year to fund maintenance and operations of "existing" park and recreation facilities?
With a tax rate increase of 1 cent per $1,000 in property value, a typical homeowner would pay $2 more annually (on a $200,000 house). With this in mind, please select the option below that best represents your opinion to the following statement.
I would like to see Spokane County bring an option before the voters to:
5. In the next 20 years, Spokane County's population is projected to grow by over 150,000 residents (There were 471,000 residents in Spokane County in 2010). To keep up with increased demand for park and recreation facilities and decreased funding, how would you address this dilemma?
Additional Comments: