The Columbia Parks and Recreation Department have proposed their 2013 update of the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan.

Those changes are expected to be presented to the Columbia City Council next month.

“We’re updating the 2002 Master plan from what was done back from the 1994 plan and then all the way to now,” Parks and Recreation Director Mike Griggs sais. “It really represents a whole new direction for our department starting in 2013 and through 2023.”

Some of the new amenities proposed include building a trick bike area and BMX bicycling track in the northeast corner of Cosmo Park.

“Some of the key facilities we’re looking at relate to activities that are more ‘X-Game’ based such as BMX, bike polo, cyclocross and Ultimate Frisbee,” Griggs said. “Things you see a lot of on (the college) campus. We’re doing a some  of it now on an informal basis, but in the master plan we’re proposing to take them to the next level.” 

The proposed changes were decided through community input. The park district first gave out a city wide survey, then park users were given a survey and finally a meeting between over 58 park user groups helped the park district agree on what changes needed to be made.

“We’ve met with the recreational trends of our user group, from soccer club, baseball, softball, tennis, football, etc. and we know where we need to be with number of facilities,” Griggs said. “Now that we know that, as we look at funding priorities, that’s where the next decisions come from.”

According to the update, it would cost the city $350,000 to build a new concrete trick bike area, $100,000 to build a BMX track and $100,000 to build an 80-space parking lot. Nonetheless, Griggs said he doesn’t want to put a price tag on these changes, saying the overall price can vary as time passes by.

In accordance to when these changes will be implemented, it all depends on when they can get the money, Griggs said.

“Our next funding opportunity will be in November 2015 with the renewal of the Park Sales Tax.  This tax generates approximately $12 million dollars over a five year period and will be the funding source for a lot of our implementations,” Griggs said.