County staff and consultants presented an updated Parks, Outdoor Recreation and Open Space Plan to the Rock County Board of Supervisors as an informational item; the plan will return to the board as a resolution for adoption next month.

John Trainor introduced consultant Ben Roer of Van Duyne (?) Van Du Wall (as stated in the meeting) and said the county must update the plan every five years to remain eligible for Department of Natural Resources grants. Roer summarized the planning process, public outreach, and major findings, and recommended a set of implementation actions and a capital-improvement framework.

Key figures in the draft plan presented to the board include: 22 parks totaling about 1,100 acres under county ownership; a current level of service of 6.7 acres per 1,000 residents (an increase from 5 acres per 1,000 after the Rock River Heritage Park acquisition); nearly 1,500 shelter rentals recorded between 2017 and 2024 that generated about $170,000 in permit revenue; and a projected need of roughly 40 acres over the next 10 years and 75 acres over 20 years to maintain the current level of service if population grows.

Roer said the plan identifies a service-area gap in the county's northeast corner and highlights priorities including improved park-user data collection, expanded trail connectivity (including the Ice Age Trail corridor and multiuse trail corridors), strategic park acquisitions and more robust marketing and programming. He also described a park-evaluation tool used previously during the Rock River Heritage Park acquisition as a way to score potential acquisitions against plan goals.

Roer emphasized that the comparison of parks and expenditures to other counties is imperfect because county structures and missions vary, but the data indicate Rock County operates more park locations with fewer acres overall and is on the lower end of per-system expenditures compared with selected peers.

The consultant noted the draft is intended to be more user-friendly by moving background and public-input material into an appendix and said staff will bring a resolution seeking formal adoption in November. No board vote was taken at the presentation; staff asked board members to submit questions to the county administrator if they want additional details ahead of the next meeting.

The board acknowledged completed projects and asked no immediate substantive changes; the item remains informational pending the November resolution for formal adoption.