Pima County is getting ready to invest in parks and pools — and new splash pads, expanded aquatics programs and upgraded community centers are coming.
Those measures and many others are included in the county’s first-ever Parks and Recreation Master Plan, which will guide how the department spends money and plans facilities for the next 10-20 years. Here are the highlights.
The big ideas
The plan identifies six priority areas to guide decision-making: strengthening organizational capacity, expanding access and equity, maintaining existing assets, broadening recreation programs, enhancing partnerships and advancing sustainability.
Action items in the 20-year plan include:
- Investing in pool facilities at several locations to replace outdated pumps, filters, heaters and locker rooms
- Modernizing community centers on the northwest side, south side and west side to improve accessibility and functionality
- Developing Esmond Station Park in the Vail area to meet recreation needs in one of the county’s fastest-growing regions
- Adding new splash pads and shaded playgrounds countywide
- Expanding aquatics capacity and youth sports programming
- Converting turf to drought-tolerant landscaping and transitioning parks to reclaimed water irrigation
- Installing solar lighting at five or more parks and replacing athletic field lights with LEDs
What the county manages now
Pima County Parks and Recreation oversees 41 parks across 5,707 acres, 12 community centers, nine pools, 106 sports fields, nine dog parks, three shooting range complexes, and 150 miles of multi-use paths — including the popular 138-mile Chuck Huckelberry Loop. The department also runs a swim team program with more than 800 young swimmers…