I. The director of parks and recreation shall by September 30, 2009, publish a written comprehensive 10-year development plan for the state park system. The director may contract with an experienced, independent firm to assist in the development of this plan. The director shall submit copies of the plan to the governor, the governor’s council, the presiding officers of the general court, the chairperson of the house resources, recreation and development committee, and the chairperson of the senate energy, environment, and economic development committee. On or before June 1, 2009, the director of parks and recreation shall submit a progress report to the chairperson of the house resources, recreation and economic development committee and the chairperson of the senate energy, environment, and economic development committee.
II. The director shall continually review this plan and revise it as necessary.
III. The strategic plan shall include:
(a) An analysis of the recreational needs of each geographic region of the state and the degree to which existing park facilities address those needs.
(b) An evaluation of overall state park system operations to identify strengths, weaknesses, and future approaches to increase revenue and simplify operations.
(c) Specific goals and objectives for the park system.
(d) A report on the progress in meeting goals and objectives during each biennium.
(e) Identification of areas in which there is a need for physical expansion of park properties.
(f) Identification of park system properties which are surplus to the state’s needs.
(g) A summary of the division’s planned maintenance program for park facilities, including, but not limited to, measures to protect against undue environmental stress.
(h) Proposed improvements to park facilities, including major renovations, repairs, additions, or new construction.
(i) A full evaluation of facilities, profit and loss, and usage trends in each state park and a comparison of such usage to national trends.
(j) A continual overview of marketing approaches and reservation systems to maximize day rental usage of the state park system.
(k) The adoption of uniform standards for managing facility day use including uniformity in fee structure, reservation procedures, and monitoring of use.
(l) An analysis of whether leasing or outsourcing certain state park functions, or entering into public/private partnerships would increase revenues and simplify operations.
IV. The strategic plan shall serve as a basis for the division’s capital and operating budget requests.
V. In developing the plan, the department shall solicit local input. The director shall also consult with the division of historical resources of the department of natural and cultural resources. The office of planning and development shall provide the director of parks and recreation with such information on the recreational needs of the state and other technical assistance as is necessary for the division to properly perform its responsibilities under this section.
VI. The director of parks and recreation shall report biennially to the house and senate committees with jurisdiction over the state park system on the state of the parks and historic sites.
Source. 1985, 389:6. 2003, 319:9. 2004, 257:44. 2007, 359:2. 2009, 242:1, eff. July 16, 2009. 2015, 259:30, eff. July 1, 2015. 2017, 156:38, 64, eff. July 1, 2017. 2020, 37:6, eff. July 29, 2020. 2021, 91:198, eff. July 1, 2021.