O-2006-2892 - Laserfiche WebLink

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26 The City will begin design of its 33-acre Westside park property, located on Canada Road between Fairmont and Spencer, in the near future. Design should be completed in 2006 with construction expected to begin on the new park in 2007. GOAL 7.3: Create and maintain an accessible parks and recreation system for enjoyment by residents and visitors alike. Staff is working on developing a more rigorous park development unit fee based on standard costs of park development. Such a unit fee would enhance the City's ability to provide parks and recreation amenities to new subdivisions and residents of the City. GOAL 7.4: Establish cooperative agreements and coordinated efforts with other governmental jurisdictions, educational bodies, and private sector entities. The City has worked closely with Harris County Precinct 2, the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT), and the Texas General Land Office to provide new facilities and beautification efforts for the City of La Porte. TXDOT has provided funding for the new Safe Routes to School project recently completed along Broadway from Bay Oaks Elementary 2.1 miles northward to Fairmont Parkway. The City has received a beautification grant to install palm trees and oleander along State Highway 225 at the Sens Road exit. This project will be expanded in 2006 to include replacement and addition of new palm trees, bald cypress trees and relocation of oleander to create a more attractive project. The City has received a grant from the Texas General Land Office to prevent future shoreline erosion at the mouth of Little Cedar Bayou. This project, completed in 2002, installed groins and protective rock to prevent future erosion. Included in the project was volunteer planting of shore grasses to assist in the erosion prevention process and to help restore a marshland in the area. The City has subsequently installed a bird watching facility at the site as well as interpretive signage. The City is working with Harris County Precinct 2 and the Texas General Land Office to provide funding for a shoreline erosion protection and beach restoration project at Sylvan Beach Park. This project has again been designated as an "Alternate Funded Project" and will be funded in the current biennium if state funds become available in the state funding cycle starting in September 2005. We anticipate installation sometime in the next two to four years. The City completed a landscape project at the Centennial Statue in conjunction with the Lyondell Corporation. A new landscape bed, sidewalk, and tree planting enhanced this property with the joint efforts of City employees and Lyondell employees. The City completed a joint venture with the La Porte Rotary Club to install a street clock and landscaping in the esplanade on Fairmont Parkway. This joint venture has provided a useful service as well as helped beautify the area. The City received a grant from Kane/ra Texas Corporation to beautify and enhance the Sylvan Beach Depot, located at the eastern end of Fairmont Parkway. This project is expected to be completed in 2006. The City has partnered with Harris County Precinct 2 to provide new play equipment and a bicycle - pedestrian bridge over Little Cedar Bayou, connecting the La Porte Recreation & Fitness Center with Little Cedar Bayou Park and Nature Trail. In addition, the City and Precinct 2 have jointly completed a skateboard park located at Sylvan Beach Park, which has proved to be very popular and well received by the community. Finally, the City is working diligently on a proposed joint venture with the City of Pasadena to provide youth baseball facilities in a multi-purpose sports complex. The proposed sports complex would be constructed on property owned by the City of Pasadena, located in the City of La Porte's extraterritorial jurisdiction. The property is on the boundary between the two cities, adjacent to the Pasadena Convention Center. Preliminary plans have been developed, and joint talks that should lead to an Inter-local Agreement for the proposed project are expected shortly.