Laserfiche WebLink
FISCAL CHALLENGES <br />For the past 10 years, parks departments <br />have been asked to do more with less. This <br />has led to creative ways to provide recreation <br />programming, an increase in partnerships, and <br />finding new funding sources. In many places, it <br />has also meant a reduction in staff and resources, <br />leading to deferred maintenance and a halt on <br />expansion of the system. <br />A- <br />9 City of Elk River - Parks and Recreation Master Plan <br />CHANGING CLIMATE <br />Recent climate trends have brought warmer <br />winters and more severe weather, all of which <br />can impact winter sports such as skating, skiing, <br />and hockey. Wetter, longer springs have meant <br />fields are not playable until later in the season, <br />and warm summers require additional resources <br />to keep fields watered and in good shape. <br />Climate change also means vegetation change. <br />Plants that cannot survive the coldest Minnesota <br />winters are now persisting, and pests and <br />invasive species that had been kept at bay by the <br />climate are making headway into the state. <br />Draft 11.25.14 <br />