The Springfield-Greene County Park Board invites residents to share their vision for five Springfield parks at the Master Plan Open House, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 4-7 p.m., at the Springfield-Greene County Botanical Center, at Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park, 2400 S. Scenic Ave., Springfield. 

Planning Design Studio will engage with residents on shaping the future for five parks: Fassnight, Grant Beach, Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial, Sequiota and Silver Springs. 

In addition to the open house, residents may share input on each park in an online survey.

Planning Design Studio is seeking input from neighbors, park users and stakeholders, both in person and online, to formulate detailed master plans for each of the five parks. Their research also includes maintenance, operations, user patterns, parking, stormwater and utilities. The Park Board expects to adopt the master plans by summer 2027.

The master plans will guide future development for the next 20 years, identifying projects to be completed as funding becomes available, as well as sustainable maintenance and operations plans. 

“We rarely have the budget to complete all desired improvements at once. Master plans break projects into logical, fundable phases,” said Ron Schneider, Director of Parks. “The planning process helps us prioritize improvements based on public interest, plan realistic budgets, coordinate grants and partnerships and avoid ‘piecemeal’ decisions that don’t fit a larger vision.” 

The five master plans are funded through a $500,000 designation from the City of Springfield’s Spring Forward Sales Tax. Planning Design Studio is consulting with Horner & Shifrin, Ballard*King & Associates, Hood-Rich Architecture and Added Dimension. 

For more information, visit SGFGCParkMP.org/