ShawneeDispatch.com

Shawnee residents love their walking, hiking and biking trails.

That's what the data of a recent citizen survey indicates, information that likely will be considered when Shawnee City Council members decide how best to use the city's limited funds for city projects. But one key survey question found residents also are eager for a western community center and indoor pool.

The Public Works and Safety Committee last week reviewed results of the Park Needs Assessment Survey, conducted by ETC/Leisure Vision in April and May. Both phone and mail surveys were conducted, and though the goal was to get at least 600 responses, 681 were turned in or completed.

Tonya Lecuru, deputy director of parks and recreation, said the needs assessment surveys are conducted every five years, and the responses to this year's survey were similar to the last survey conducted, though 22 percent of the respondents had lived in Shawnee less than five years, and another 20 percent had lived here less than 10 years.

"If you look at the amount of people who answered the survey, we've got a lot of new people moving into the area, and they still have a lot of the same wants and needs," she said.

The trails ranked the highest as the recreation facility that respondents have used in the last year, with 63 percent, and that respondents visit most often, with 46 percent. The survey also showed that the Shawnee Farmer's Market was gaining in popularity; it ranked second in both areas.

Trails also were ranked the highest as a facility that is needed; 78 percent of respondents reported they needed the trails. The farmer's market ranked highly yet again in this question, coming in second with 70 percent.

Youth and adult softball fields, the skate park, basketball courts and fishing areas were toward the bottom of the list, all with less than 10 percent of respondents. However, 67 percent of respondents said they saw a need for small neighborhood parks, and pools still ranked highly, with 62 percent of respondents saying they have a need for them.

The Shawnee Civic Centre was the most often visited of all park sites, excluding the pools, with 46 percent of respondents saying they'd been there in the last year. West Flanders, Stump and Swarner parks followed the Civic Centre. The same four locations, in the same order, came in on top for the locations that respondents visit most often.

But residents seem happy with the condition of the recreation facilities, as 89 percent of responses rated their conditions as either excellent (38 percent) or good (51 percent). A scant 2 percent rated the facilities as simply fair, and 9 percent didn't respond to the question.

One surprising result was that only 27 percent of respondents reported participating in programs offered by the Parks and Recreation Department in the last year. But most of those said they would rate the city's programs as good or excellent.

Adult fitness and wellness programs were ranked as the most important for the city to offer, but citywide special events were the programs that respondents said they most often participated in.

Other questions gave the city insight into what things they might want to include in a future western community center or indoor aquatic facility and how residents prioritize things like on-street bike lanes.

Though trails were ranked at the top in most questions, when asked how residents would allocate $100 among various recreation facilities, they came in second at $21. Construction of a new western community center and indoor pool came in first with $25, while acquisition and development of new parkland ranked third with $19.

Lecuru said the last survey asked people to consider the need for both a new east pool, which opened the summer of 2007, and a western community center together, and at the time, the two items ranked the highest with $26. So this year's survey shows just as much interest in the western facility alone.

"Basically that same amount of interest is apparent now for an indoor aquatics facility in the community center," she said. "So there's just a really strong interest in aquatics."

The survey results will be formally presented Oct. 13 to the full Council.