Marble Falls park survey offers prize drawing
By Glynis Crawford Smith
The Highlander
No matter where you are from, the Marble Falls Parks & Recreation Department wants your ideas for their facilities and programs.
An online survey is being conducted to collect the information that will make its way into the process going on to update the city's Park, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan. The document will help Marble Falls set priorities for parks, recreation facilities, trails and open spaces for the next 10 years.
As an incentive for the effort, those who complete the survey by Aug. 31 will be able to enter a drawing for a chance to win two VIP tickets to FiestaJAM 2016 to be held Sept. 23-24 at Lakeside Park and Pavilion or a 16GB Verizon iPhone 5s.
“Anyone who works or shops here or who just enjoys coming to Marble Falls is invited to take the survey,” said Monique Breaux, administrative assistant for Parks & Recreation. “The city takes everyone's views seriously.”
In addition to information about park resources you already enjoy, the survey will ask what features and programs you would like to see in future, Breaux explained.
Link to the survey from the City of Marble Falls website, www.ci.marble-falls.tx.us, or go directly to www.surveymonkey.com/r/marblefallsparksplan.
If a spouse or other family member wants to complete a questionnaire it can be done online or additional copies can be printed off the city website and delivered to city hall.
For each question, check the one box closest to your opinion unless instructions say, “Check all that apply.” All survey answers will remain confidential and the city promises information will not be sold or used for solicitation.
This is an important time for parks planning. The Marble Falls Economic Development Corporation is poised to move forward with a new multi-million dollar downtown hotel and conference center development that will include changes and additions to central city parks. New housing and residential development may expand parkland and almost certainly will increase demands for park use in some areas.
The survey alone may surprise you and spark some new, critical thinking. The questions are an out growth of those the Marble Parks & Recreation Commission and department staff wrestle with. A map included in the survey shows the extent of city park land.
The Marble Falls Parks & Recreation Department is responsible for maintaining 130 acres of parkland, trails and special use areas, including both city-owned and privately owned land. The existing parks system includes one pocket park, three neighborhood and seven community parks. The two linear parks in the are the well-used 1.3-mile Backbone Creek Hike and Bike Trail, extending from Lakeside Park to Westside Park, and Whitman Branch Hike and Bike Trail, eight-tenths of a mile from Johnson Park to Childers Park that mainly parallels city streets. Special use areas maintained by the department include Marble Falls City Cemetery, the Granite Mountain Roadside Park and the downtown area.
Falls Creek Park at 120 Main Street, home to the Highland Lakes Farmers Market, also features a skateboard and BMX bike facility and the Jolly Rodgers Paddle Company concession on Backbone Creek.
Johnson Park at 230 South Avenue J is a Lone Star Legacy Park with the largest variety of features in a single park and access to Backbone Creek. The Hays Addition Park on Lakeshore Drive follows Lake Marble Falls and has a boat ramp. Lakeside Park & Pavilion on Buena Vista Drive offer a panoramic view of the lake, the city pool, tennis courts and a boat ramp.
Westside Park on Second Street offers disc golf and an off-leash dog park and the newly renovated Westside Community Center.
Villa Vista Park is located on Villa Vista Way (Seventh Street) and is the city's only developed neighborhood pocket park. Parks View Park on Park View Drive off Mormon Mill Road is completely undeveloped. Whitman Branch Greenbelt, located north of Ranch to Market Road 1431 near the Marble Falls Middle School encompasses almost 17 acres of undeveloped park land.
