Research by the National Recreation and Parks Association shows that community parks create impacts on many levels including things like creating jobs, boosting property values, drawing visitors, improving conservation and watershed quality, and reducing community health care costs. To share some of the specific ways those impacts are created, Chad Shoemaker gave a thorough update and overview of the projects and goals of the Mexico Parks Department at the Feb. 28 Mexico City Council meeting.

For a town the size of Mexico, it is an impressive metric that we have more than 500 acres of public park space. To keep that all in good condition for the use and enjoyment of the public, the parks department employees cover everything from mowing the grounds to shoveling snow along properties to helping with funerals. They also put a lot of time and resources into the various structures, like public restrooms, maintenance buildings, and park shelters.

Beyond the regular day-to-day maintenance and groundskeeping, there is also a timeline for larger projects. Among the projects and processes underway for the parks department are:

Parks Map Monuments

These are three large granite blocks that will be mounted on foundations at parks and will provide clear and detailed maps of the park to help make them more user friendly.

Off-leash Dog Park

This is an item that has been in discussion and planning since about 2011, and it is aimed at helping to balance the needs of all the park users and members of the surrounding communities, including dog owners currently using various parks to accommodate their four-legged family members. In addition to the collaboration with the local humane society, there will also be public discussions around the current plans for a small area in Northeast Park. The next public meeting on this is March 30 at 6 pm.

Water Slide

This was included in the planning and development of the aquatic center and some preparation was included in the new facilities. The parks department is working to get a project bid from the vendor, and once that is in place, the fundraising program will be ready to launch. The new aquatic center has been drawing people from surrounding communities, which boosts Mexico’s profile, and the addition of a water slide will ramp that up even further.

Kiwanis Lake – In order to keep the lake ecosystem and the fish population healthy and thriving, the department received a grant from the Allen P. and Josephine B. Green Foundation to work with engineers on ways to solve some challenges created by nutrient overload. Because of things like lawn fertilizer run-off and rotting leaves, the mix of algae and other plant growth, for example, and the fish population can be pushed out of balance.

Lakeview Dam

The other major project—about $175K over the next couple years—is a needed renovation to the Lakeview Dam. Inspection a couple years back pointed out a couple things that will help to preserve the life of the dam and the waterway, including resurfacing some of the concrete on the face of the spillway and putting in some structures below the waterline to reduce erosion.

There are also a number of ongoing projects, including replacing the rooftops on some of the park restrooms, park trail repairs and improvements, and upgrading the road and interment shelter for the cemetery.

As with many other organizations and businesses, Shoemaker is working to accomplish all these goals while wrestling with the challenges of increasing labor costs and turnover, decreased supply chains, and rising costs of parts and equipment. That means getting all the leverage possible from the funding that comes in through the city, through grants, and through the Mexico Park Foundation (PO Box 216).

After 20 years in the role as director, Shoemaker is still going strong and enthusiastic about all that’s going on in Mexico.

“You know, the last survey showed us that over 92 percent of the residents use our parks in some way,” he said, “from soccer through the Y, to the walking trails, to the shelters for family or club events, and it’s rare to have a field that lets you really interact with so many people from every part of the community.”