Young Park's engagement numbers land: 54 surveys, 1,100 data points, a splash pad on top

If you read nothing else

• Six of seven seats were filled — the fullest board in the file. Only District 5 was absent.
• Young Park engagement: 54 completed surveys, seven focus groups, a Farmers Market pop-up, a public meeting at Lynn Middle School, over 1,100 data points, over 1,000 mailers.
• Splash pad ranked number one overall; trails second; park furniture third. Eighty-seven percent of residents had visited Young Park in the last year.
• Young Park is one of 12 legacy parks in the area. No budget has been approved as of yet.
• Greg Shervanick said what he saw "should not be accepted at all" and called the contractor's information "tainted."
• Apodaca Park's design is 90% set in stone, over a million dollars received, construction targeted for winter/spring and roughly six months long.

Who was in the room

Public comment

Kept at length on purpose. Every point raised is listed, in the order the minutes record it.

8.1 Young Park master plan — the engagement record

Katherine Harrison-Rogers said staff anticipate getting the conceptual alternatives within the next couple of weeks. The report covers community engagement, City Council, the community at large, and staff. There was a lot of engagement.

The outreach: 54 completed surveys, seven focus groups, a pop-up at the Farmers Market, and a public meeting at Lynn Middle School — producing over 1,100 data points.

Top favorite memories were fishing, picnics, and music and cultural events. Young Park safety was big, along with amenities and new and improved facilities.

Facility priorities: splash pad was number one overall, trails number two, park furniture number three. Staff said they are trying to balance everything. Amphitheater, shade, lighting and nature programming were named for better amenities.

Parking drew both more and less, but was really interpreted as being sure special events had overflow parking.

People love the shade, the trees, the pond, and the open space. Requests included more seating and shaded areas around the pond, more paths leading to the pond, amphitheater upgrades extending the stage and increasing seating capacity, splash pads near the center of the park or adjacent to the playgrounds, more public art on the west side and near the entrance sculpture, and trail distance markers to encourage walking and fitness.

The northeast corner was called underutilized; passive quiet recreation is preferred in that area. Other asks: reduce parking lot size to allow more green space for other uses, a dog park on the south side of the park, converting existing tennis courts into multiuse courts, improved crosswalks and sidewalks for safer more accessible park entry, improved bike connectivity to nearby streets and trails, and better lighting throughout the park.

Music and art events were really popular, as well as nature programs and fitness classes. Main uses now are community events, playgrounds, and walking. Eighty-seven percent of the residents visited Young Park in the last year.

Obstacles named: the park is not feeling safe right now; the park is not well maintained; the big one was bathrooms, which is a challenge because they are cleaned and then someone gets them dirty again; and the park is too far away from home.

How the word got out — and where it goes next

Staff are trying to work with Lynn Middle School for the next stage. The school has the Cougar Council and staff will try to get them to help with ideas on the concept plans when ready. They are working with the principal and vice-principal but will check about community school staff. They hope to hold an event at the Renaissance Fair and capture more information.

Household representation: 32% have no children.

There were seven different outreach events — this board, City Council, staff, a neighborhood meeting, and the pop-up event at the Farmers Market. The next round is Lynn Middle School for a neighborhood event, the youth event, and in the park at the Renaissance Fair.

During the period staff put up posters all over the park, sent out over 1,000 mailers, ran some ad spots on the radio, and posted on Facebook and Instagram.

Young Park is one of 12 legacy parks in the area.

Master plan goals: improve safety, preserve the natural spaces, foster education and culture, and improve recreation amenities.

Next steps: anticipate receiving the three concept plan alternatives, then bring them out again to the community for several events to talk about preferences and changes. Staff would like more input from this board and will bring this back for the November 20th meeting.

Noise, crime and the limits of the data

On the noise issue previously raised by the board: the recent engagement plan picked the highest priorities identified by the community. Noise is listed, but was not a top priority. As things are designed and programmed, considerations will be made.

Crime was mentioned. Staff said crime in a park takes a lot of different techniques to solve, that lighting can help, that safety is always within design, and that the more people in the park, the less crime there is.

The park is part of the patrols with LCPD and the state's mounted police volunteer group. Specific hours, days and weeks of patrol have not been shared with staff.

A question was raised on whether the park rangers are effective, but the program has not started yet so there is no data.

The three concept plans will have various alternatives based on the information received from the public. A budget has not been approved as of yet.

Legacy parks were defined as older parks in the community. Park impact fees have to be used for new construction or a new level of service, but not for maintenance.

In the discussion following public comment, a suggestion was raised to take things that are in direct conflict between different groups and just cross those off, with the observation that nothing will be all things to all people. It was noted that a section on the map that looks like parking lot is a privately owned business and needs to be marked, and a suggestion was made to show five of the top priorities rather than just three.

8.2 Apodaca Park draft construction design

Katherine Harrison-Rogers said there is a master plan for the whole park that includes more than just an aquatic playground and a multiuse path, and that there are a lot of funding sources. Staff are ready to move forward and start putting shovels in the ground. This is a legacy park.

The park already has pickleball, a toddler playground, bathrooms, and another playground. The new plan shows enhanced parking throughout, a pavilion, lawn games improvements, places for people to sit and recreate, an aquatic play area, improved bathrooms, and a new natural playground, plus a shade structure near the pickleball courts and lighting.

The pickleball courts had fill in the cracks that is not level with the court itself and will need to be fixed.

The water feature will allow various interactive features and will be turned off at night. Restroom improvements are required because a water feature means there have to be areas where people can rinse off in showers.

Staff want somebody under contract this winter. At this point in time 90% of the plan is set in stone. They hope to have 100% drawings later this fall, but they are pushing, and hope to be under construction winter/spring, with construction running approximately six months.

There was discussion of an open space plan with an adjacent property owner. Staff have been working with White Sands Construction on provisions written into conditions of approval on the plat, which include a trail and park space. Staff has been pushing to work with them, and no more development can be done until the plans are worked out.

8.3 After school program

Robert Nunez said students are through nine weeks of school. The portfolio covers out-of-school-time programs for kindergarten through fifth grade, teenagers, the Youth Development and Divergent program, and Keep Las Cruces Beautiful.

Five of the out-of-school-time programs are within Las Cruces Public Schools, using their multipurpose rooms, libraries and cafeterias and storage space for equipment and supplies. There is also the Weed and Seed location on north Tornillo Street, and the department oversees two Las Cruces Public School sites.

The Teen Connection is currently at Frank O'Brien Papen Community Center on the southwest corner of the city. A second location off of Porter at the East Mesa Recreation Center is being prepared for the new year, with the center opening in January 2026.

Staffing as recorded: Pat Acosta, supervisor intake specialist and divergent specialist, with eight staff and four interns from NMSU. Amelia Corrales, supervisor, with four temp individuals and work study students from NMSU. Zach Guy on Teen Connection, overseeing both locations, with two full-time staff, two part-time and contract staff. Felipe Briseno oversees Weed and Seed and two site locations — Safe Haven, Loma Heights and Fairacres. Cathy Gonzales oversees the school locations: Alameda, Cesar, Sunrise, Jornada, Monte Vista and Sonoma Elementary schools. A case manager through Youth Services assists across all areas and goes to all afterschool sites including the teen sites.

Weed and Seed has been in the same location for 20 years, funded for 15 years through a federal grant that "weeded out the bad and seeded in the good." For the first 15 years it was under the police department and transitioned to Parks and Recreation approximately 12 years ago.

There is a student rec aide program: a minimum of junior in high school with a 3.0 average, four of these, plus another 8-10 teenagers in recreation under Josh who assist in various aspects of the programs. Temp agencies are also used.

Some K-5 program locations are maxed out; 70 is the max point. Families and Youth Plus have a family grant and work with the Las Cruces Public Schools nutrition program to offer dinners and a snack at all afterschool program locations — an at-risk meal program during the school year and the summer food service program in summer. Programs also include homework assistance, community service projects, physical activities, arts and crafts, guest presenters and field trips. Intersessions recently had fall break with three locations for youth. Summer will be approximately seven weeks, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Challenges: securing locations — LCPS is a great partner but has its own upkeep responsibilities and its own programs take precedence; Meerscheidt is currently under construction; and filling vacant positions, which runs through a lot of contracts, college age staff and retirees. Staff are trying to work with HR to expedite getting part-timers on board, and reach out to nonprofits for help with activities the city cannot offer.

Teen Connection has approximately 70 teens registered from grades 6-12, running to 8:00 Monday through Thursday and extended to 9:00 on Fridays, with the first and last Friday of each month until 11:00 p.m. Average attendance is 40. Youth are educated on using public transportation. Staff have seen some challenging behavioral issues, and the case manager has spent a lot of time educating staff and helping families find necessary services.

These youth programs run via the public schools, not the private schools, although some private schools have been willing to participate. There will be a discussion with the nutrition division about possibly utilizing public parks; the grant from the state is specific to being only on school properties.

9. Staff member comments

Katherine Harrison-Rogers said they received a large grant for a bike park out at East Mesa Sports Complex, and that Apodaca Park received over a million dollars. A Downtown Master Plan update kickoff is coming soon. George Pearson said there is a public meeting on Monday, more stakeholder meetings Tuesday, an open house Wednesday, and a presentation on Friday.

Joey Dominguez said they recently had the Whole Enchilada Softball Tournament with over 260 teams over a 72-hour period. Staff are preparing to install light decorations for downtown, the plaza, city hall and the aquatic center. They recently met with the Doña Ana Arts Council about the Renaissance Fair agreement. A tree giveaway at Las Cruces Plaza last week distributed 50 trees.

Josh Clevenger said the candy drop is at Maag on Sunday the 26th, 9:30 to 3:00.

Steve Bingham said the closed session meeting with City Council at 10:30 a.m. is to discuss pending or threatening litigation pertaining to Walnut Skate Park, which is closed, and that there have been some unexpected issues with the construction. He said he is excited about the potential of starting construction on the first legacy park.

Robert Nunez said Keep Las Cruces Beautiful has neighborhood dumpster day this Saturday at East Mesa Recreation Center, Apodaca Park, Young Park, and Frank O'Brien Papen Community Center.

10. Board member comments

Board Member Alana Bradley asked if Parks and Rec is affiliated with the ice rink at the Southern New Mexico State Fair Grounds. The answer recorded is no.

She said LCPS, to save money with new budgets, cut all the 6th and 7th grade bantam sports programs. She noticed it has been almost impossible to get any court space because there are so many volleyball teams, and asked if there are any large indoor spaces planned for volleyball. Steve Bingham said they are working on some options and some concepts and funding.

11. Next meeting date

The next meeting was set for November 20, 2025. Laura Haas will not be in town and will need somebody to run the meeting. Aracely Tellez said she is tentative. November 13th was raised as possible.

Recorded votes

Left open at the gavel