SD17 - Virginia State Parks Planning Standards and Status


Executive Summary:
Purpose: To determine the extent to which the Commonwealth is meeting its public park and recreational needs as defined in § 10.1-200, item 8, of the Code of Virginia (Chapter 780 of the 1998 Acts of the Assembly and formerly Senate Bill 290). (See attachment A.)

Establishment of Standard

Virginia Outdoors Plan:
The Virginia Outdoors Plan (VOP) is the basic outdoor recreation planning guide for the Commonwealth of Virginia. The first plan, Virginia's Commonwealth, was published in 1965. In that plan and each subsequent edition, demand for recreation areas and facilities has been a component of the analysis for determining the recreational needs of Virginians. In order to refine and more precisely quantify demand and needs, an outdoor recreation survey and an inventory review process were initiated in 1972. Since that time, these have been completed as part of the five year planning cycle associated with the publication of the Virginia Outdoors Plan (VOP) [the plan is also known as the State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan or SCORP]. The survey and inventory provide data by locality and planning region.

In the most recent plan (the 1996 VOP), the planning district (PD) boundaries were adopted as the boundaries for recreation planning regions. This permits the presentation of inventory and demand data and the subsequent calculation of need in a format that is uniform across the state and is readily adaptable and useful to already established statistical areas. The new inventory of outdoor recreation resources was completed in December 1999. The outdoor survey was initiated in January 2000, completed in December 2000, and will be incorporated into the 2001 Virginia Outdoors Plan to be completed by December 2001.

Area Standards:
Area standards for recreational development are suggested in the Virginia Outdoors Plan (VOP). The plan identifies area standards, space standards, and capacity standards in Appendix-A of the document. The plan suggests a standard for Virginia's State Parks of 10 acres/1000 population. Area standards represent a minimum acreage, which should be exceeded when possible. These standards are reviewed during the development process of the VOP and revised as appropriate. The most recent review cycle was a part of the development of the 2001 Virginia Outdoors Plan.

Outdoors Recreational Area Facility Demands:
The Virginia Outdoors Survey defines the demand for outdoor recreation. This survey addresses standard questions pertaining to participation in outdoor recreation; e.g., time requirements to reach recreation destinations, and ownership (public or private) of facilities where recreational activity took place. Thirty-nine activities are surveyed. For ease of use, data is broken down by county, city, planning district, physiographic region, and the state as a whole. Survey results are developed for each locality in the state. Detailed information is published in the Virginia Outdoors Survey Report and generalized results appear in the Virginia Outdoors Plan.

Outdoor Recreation Area Supply:
The existing supply of recreational facilities forms the link between recreational demand and the need for outdoor recreational opportunities. An updated inventory of outdoor recreation supply is undertaken on a five-year cycle and is coordinated to coincide with the development of the Virginia Outdoors Plan. The current inventory update was completed in December of 1999. The updated inventory of outdoor recreation supply is a defining element in measuring needs in the Commonwealth. The need for outdoor recreation is calculated from an assessment of the supply and demand data. This provides a reasonably accurate guide for directing the expenditure of local, state, and federal resources and suggests emphasis for governmental and private acquisition and development programs.

Population Trends and Densities:
The population estimates developed by the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia form the benchmark population data for the development of population projections and acreage and facility needs. The reports prepared by the center provide data from recent census, population change statistics, and other related information for the state, localities, and the planning districts. These figures are used in the development of the Virginia Outdoors Plan demand data and in the determination of the need for additional acreage and facilities to meet outdoor recreation demand.

Summary:
The Virginia Outdoors Plan, with its standards, inventory, and demand data base, combined with the population information contained in the Weldon Cooper Center reports, provide the basic information needed to determine whether Virginia is meeting open space and recreation needs. The five-year schedule for revising the document through a public input process assures that the database is current and that recommendations in area, facility; and capacity standards are appropriate.