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NEEDS ASSESSMENT FACILITIES STRATEGIC PLAN - Final Report Manhattan Beach, CA Wants, Needs, Priorities and Guiding Principles Community and Recreation Facilities Priorities A needs assessment starts with an understanding of what's possible, desired and Through a variety of outreach efforts including interviews with city staff, com- reasonable to expect in programs, services and facilities within a community. munity, stakeholder and interest group meetings, the community questionnaire The product of the needs assessment is a list of facilities and the identifi cation of and the Steering Committee meetings over an approximately twelve month spaces and amenities to be included within them. Prioritization provides an ideal period a clear formulation of community and recreation facilities priorities order in which to invest dollars in fulfi llment of the needs and guiding principles emerged. establish the context within which the facilities are placed and confi gured. Top Tier Priority Wants In terms of priority, two facilities have unamibiguously emerged as the top two Knowing what's possible and desired can be achieved in a number of ways priorities: beginning with what exists and works within the community already and within other communities. Comparison with peer cities is an effective way to calibrate • Library what's reasonable to expect and to understand what best practices in facilities planning and design have to offer. • Aquatics Needs Second Tier Priority Needs for purposes of the facilities strategic plan were identifi ed as the fl oor area and space requirements necessary to fulfi ll the programs, services and facilities Four others fall into a second tier, although legitimately the Multi-Purpose desires of the community. Community Center could fall into the fi rst tier: Priorities • Multi-Purpose Intergenerational Community Center (Including Dedicated Senior Meeting/Activity Center) The community decides its priorities based on the list of reasonable desires the needs assessment and other factors such as the condition of existing facilities, the • Multi Purpose Intergenerational Indoor Recreation Center costs of new ones, and existing or projected demand for programs and services. The priorities inform not necessarily the shape of the master plan but rather the (Including Meeting Rooms andSupport Spaces For Use by Boys & Girls Scouts) order in which the master plan is implemented. • Teen Center & Skate Park Guiding Principles. Other priorities not directly related to facilities priorities were identifi ed that as Third Tier Priority a set of principles gave guidance to how the master plan was shaped and is to be implemented. The principles of maintaining recreational fi eld space and increas- Four facilities fall into a third tier of priority: ing open space were two key ones that infl uenced the shape of the master plans for all of the major sites within the scope of the facilities strategic plan. • Community Theater • Visual Arts Center 147 Final Report - FACILITIES STRATEGIC PLAN NEEDS ASSESSMENT Manhattan Beach, CA Interpretations, Caveats, and Precautions Guiding Principles: Other Community Priorities While there is clarity at the top of the list--the library fi rst and the aquatics cen- • Maintain Inventory of Play Fields. The quantity of outdoor soccer and ter second--there is considerable ambiguity at the middle and the bottom of the ball fi elds is both suffi cient and necessary. Fields should not be reduced list. Many people mean many things by "multi-purpose community center"-- in number, although there may be opportunities for their relocation. An many tend to include in their vision of such a facility a senior center, and/or teen increase in the number of fi elds would be welcomed. center, and/or an indoor recreation center and/or a scout facility. Were these facilities to be combined in part or whole it is likely that such a "multi-purpose • Increase Park Open Space. Un-programmed open space within the neigh- community center" would surge in priority and sit along side the library and borhoods is a high priority for many in the community--places with land- aquatics in the top tier. Most if not all of the second and third tier facilities scape, grass and trees in which to relax and just be. The existing botanical include components which could potentially be shared among them. gardens adjacent to Polliwog Park are admired and valued by many in the community and considered an integral part of the park. A senior center may not have made the top tier simply because many saw facili- ties for seniors as best integrated within an intergenerational community center. • Right Size Facilities Facilities should be appropriate for the community of Others didn't know that there are as many as 1,400 boys and girls and 800 regis- Manhattan Beach such that they do not become regionally serving and thus tered adults involved in scouting in Manhattan Beach-- one of the largest such generate increased traffi c on the streets of the City. organizations in the country. Scouts no longer meet in private homes as they did in the 50s and 60s. They are constantly looking for places to gather ending up • Provide Suffi cient, Not Too Much Parking. New facilities must account in a smattering of venues across the city such as churches and school rooms in adequately for the parking loads they generate, preferably on site. Facilities addition to the little scout house in Live Oak Park. in the area of the Civic Center may make use of existing parking recently constructed there provided the hours of use are worked out. Accessibility to A teen center may have fallen to the third tier simply for the lack of a present, public transportation should be considered in the placement of facilities. vocal constituency. The skate park has not appeared at the top of anyone's list partly because of a lack of understanding of the evolution of the activity--its • Create Bike Paths & Dog Parks. Bike paths--a bike path system, in fact-- emergence as an organized, competitive sport on par with youth soccer and and dog parks are increasingly seen as important amenities to be considered little league baseball and the role of a skate park in moving skateboarding from as part of an overall civic and open space infrastructure. the streets beyond its "renegade" image and into a more controlled, safe and family friendly environment. • Enhance Relationships with Neighborhoods. Facilities should be both pedestrian and bike accessible to and from neighborhoods. Facilities should While the performing arts constituency has not been as vocal as others in advo- respect the fabric of the neighborhoods in which they are located; they cating for a performing arts facility they have made convincing arguments for should be dignifi ed yet understated in both massing and design . why Manhattan Beach is in need of a facility that is neither too small nor too large in order to serve local and student theater that cannot be accommodated • Implement Incrementally. Facilities should be planned, designed in built anywhere else in this city or neighboring ones. Performing and visual arts are in increments in order to establish the conditions for and a track record of not a top priority of the community but they are a priority. success that the community can trust. Availability of appropriate sites, accessibility of sites and the availability of • Apply Transparency & Accountability. Keep the community in the loop parking, relative costs of facilities (a skate board park is much less expensive on and the City accountable for costs and schedules from beginning to to build than an aquatic center), the relative state of repair of existing facilities, end. the presence of similar facilities in neighboring communities and other factors can alter the priority list. 148 NEEDS ASSESSMENT FACILITIES STRATEGIC PLAN - Final Report Manhattan Beach, CA Overview of the Needs Assessment Project Leadership The identifi cation and prioritization of community and recreational facilities City Council formed a subcommittee comprised of two council members and needs began at the initiation of the fi rst phase of the project, Reconnaissance senior city administrative staff in order to give direction and focus to the course and Analysis, in July of 2006 and continued through the next phase Option of the project. This committee met on an as-needed basis on average every two Development that concluded in the late summer of 2007. to three weeks. In addition senior city administrative staff provided leadership and assistance in management of the project, scheduling of meetings and inter- A variety of methods were applied in order to understand types and sizes of facili- views, resolving key technical issues as they arose etc. ties most appropriate for the community of Manhattan Beach. These methods included historical research, peer city and benchmark facility research, demand FSP Subcommittee and cost recovery analyses and a robust, comprehensive multi faceted program of community outreach. • Nick Tell, Mayor • Jim Aldinger, City Council Member Outreach efforts included: • Geoff Dolan, City Manager • Monthly steering committee meetings • Sherilyn Lombos, Former Assistant City Manager • Over eighty stakeholder and interest group interviews and meetings • Lindy Coe-Juell, Assistant City Manager • Six city wide community meetings • Richard Gill, Director Parks and Recreation • City wide community questionnaire Senior City Administration • Internet based public dialogue site (community blog) • Geoff Dolan, City Manager • Sherilyn

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