By David Markham
A new JCPRD Natural Resources Plan Update aims to continue the work of the original plan from five years ago, carrying forward its vision and principles while updating key portions such as a priority project list, operational needs, and the development of a new park classification framework.
The update was accepted during the Johnson County Board of Park and Recreation Commissioners’ regular meeting on Nov. 19 and builds on the success of the original JCPRD Natural Resource Plan: A Conservation Framework for a Sustainable Future,” which was adopted in 2019.
“The new restoration workplan is a roadmap of projects reflecting priorities for the next 10 years across many of JCPRD’s properties,” explained Park Planner Will Metcalf, who co-managed the update effort. “The plan sets forth a goal for JCPRD to actively manage over 7,000 acres (nearly three quarters) of its natural areas by 2035 through a combination of staff, private contractors, and volunteers. Roughly 5,000 acres per year are currently under active management, depending on the intensity of work.”
“We looked at the county in a different way than we did in 2019,” added Natural Resource Manager and update plan co-manager Matt Garrett. “We have a lot more capacity. We talked about a new park classification system; Like what are the components that make up a JCPRD park? Is Meadowbrook Park the same thing as Shawnee Mission Park? Should the ratio of natural versus developed park spaces be the same? The team had a lot of meetings over 14 months with stakeholders from across the county. We had to agree on really important ideas to move conservation forward in the county.”
Desired outcomes JCPRD hopes to achieve through the update include: an increase in the number of acres actively managed, improving the quality of natural areas over time, increasing volunteerism and engagement, and continuing high levels of public approval.
As part of the update, JCPRD established a definition of natural areas. The plan defines them as “land and water resources designated for the protection of sensitive ecological resources such as rare or endangered species, to be used for nature-based recreation or activities in accordance with the intended use list at an appropriate intensity.”
Central to the plan update are new natural area guidelines meant to guide park development decisions in a way that ensures current and future generations can enjoy quality natural areas within JCPRD. The guidelines have been used to sort existing JCPRD properties into five overall parkland categories.
Regional Park Preserves are large (100+ acres) parks with intact, high-quality natural areas, as well as pockets of development to support recreation, education, and access. They will be managed to protect and restore the largest, highest-quality natural area in the park system and support immersive experiences in nature. JCPRD parks in this category include: Ernie Miller Park & Nature Center; Cedar Niles Park, Big Bull Creek Park, Kill Creek Park, Camp Branch Park and Camp Branch Glade.
Streamway Park Preserves can vary in size and are natural corridors around streams and stream buffers with limited development which supports passive nature-based recreation. These areas will be managed to preserve terrestrial and aquatic resources, provide connectivity for people and wildlife, and serve as entry points to natural corridors. In this category are: Mill Creek Streamway Park, Little Cedar Creek Streamway Park, Kill Creek Streamway Park, Arthur & Betty Verhaeghe Park, Blue River Streamway Park, and Coffee Creek Streamway Park.
Regional Parks are large (100+ acres) parks with large, high-quality natural areas, as well as large and intensive developed areas commonly used for activities and programing. These parks can accommodate a wider range of development and activities, and visitors can also be transitioned into large-scale natural settings. Parks in this category include: Shawnee Mission Park, Lexington Lake Park, and Heritage Park.
Community Parks are typically less than 100 acres and feature flexible park land with community-based development, as well as comfortable nature interactions. Their management focus will be on meeting community needs for gathering spaces and recreation opportunities, with nature experiences on a small scale. Included in this category are: Antioch Park, Meadowbrook Park, Sunflower Nature Park, Stilwell Community Park, and Thomas S. Stoll Memorial Park.
Special Park & Recreation Areas vary in size and include sports complexes and facilities, golf courses, historic, educational, or cultural facilities. These parks are dedicated for highly-active and special-use recreation areas where nature can be a complementary experience. In this category are: Tomahawk Hills Golf Course, Mildale Farm, TimberRidge Adventure Center, and Heritage Park Golf Course.
“The park classifications provide guidelines that support the master planning process and long-term ecological stewardship,” Metcalf said. “The community may start to see more consistency in terms used by staff and hired consultants to discuss the relationship of natural areas and proposed or planned park development. The classifications will help JCPRD holistically balance numerous community needs while protecting nature and providing high-quality, nature-based experiences. They are another tool to continue working toward a reality where JCPRD visitors 50 years from now can have similar experiences in nature to those today.”
The plan update also includes a ten-year phasing plan for 23 priority management projects over 1,700 acres at 13 JCPRD parks. This will address and restore prairies, wetlands, woodlands, and Savannah ecosystems, as well as removal of invasive species.
To prepare the update, staff worked with the same consulting team from Vireo of Kansas City, Mo., as they did for the original natural resource plan, but this time an ecologist from Resource Environment Solutions was also included.
“The consultants performed analysis to help determine how JCPRD’s land has changed over time and reviewed other aspects of the Natural Resource Team’s work,” Metcalf said.
“Beyond the project team of the consultant and JCPRD staff, the process included input from an Internal Steering Committee representing JCPRD leadership and a Technical Advisory Group numbering over 30 experts representing city; state; and federal agencies; staff from other Johnson County Government departments; and nonprofit partners. The project team conducted interviews with other JCPRD staff and stakeholders, too. And of course we engaged the public. All of that was the basis for the recommendations and updates in the plan.”
To gather public input, the update team conducted an online survey and hosted in-person stations at the Johnson County Arts & Heritage Center and at Ernie Miller Nature Center.
“We received 230 responses, where we saw high levels of support for the park classifications framework (88%) and 91% supported dedicating additional resources to JCPRD’s natural resource efforts,” Metcalf said. “This tracks with data from the 2024 Legacy Plan, where 84% of Johnson County residents indicated environmental stewardship is “very” or “somewhat important” over the next 20 years.”
As a regional leader in natural resource management, the update also included a benchmarking survey to measure where JCPRD stands in relation to four peer organizations across the country. These included: Lake County, Ill.; Kane County, Ill.; Mecklenburg County, N.C.; and Three Rivers Park District, located northwest of Minneapolis, Minn. The survey showed three areas where JCPRD can improve: natural resource budgeting, natural resource staffing, and volunteer hours. Data collected from these communities, as well as local community input, also formed the basis for the park classification system.
Guiding principles for the plan update included: protecting sensitive natural areas in order to foster resilient and biodiverse natural areas; understanding historical and current conditions of natural areas; designing within the limits of existing soils, hydrology, and vegetation conditions; creating attractive and resilient plant communities that can be managed economically; telling the ecological story of JCPRD; bringing people into natural areas while protecting biodiversity and ecosystem resilience; and using indicators and monitoring to document trends and determine success.
As the largest landowner in Johnson County, JCPRD currently owns and maintains 10,500 acres (up from about 10,000 in 2019), of which 86% (about 9,200 acres) are natural areas. During the first five years of the original plan implementation, JCPRD collaborated with partners and volunteers to restore, manage, and monitor more than 5,000 acres of prairie and woodland habitats within the park system. Significant work highlights include: 900 acres of prairie planted, 500 acres of non-prairie converted, 1,000 acres of bush honeysuckle removed, and the addition of two full-time and three part-time natural resources staff and equipment to support them.
Other related successes during implementation of the original plan included: partnering with the Kansas Department of Fish and Wildlife for aquatics management at JCPRD properties, hosting two natural resources interns, collaborating with JCPRD’s Culture Division for an Art & Natural Resources Artist Residency, and establishing an innovative deer management program.
“We were able to put 683 acres of prairie at Big Bull Creek Park in the first five years of this plan,” Natural Resource Manager Garrett said. “When funding and the staff combined, we were able to hit the ground running and get 5,000 acres under management in the first five years of this program. In five years, we did amazing work. And with that, we were able to reduce the grasslands that are of European background, the roan, and the fescue. We dropped those numbers drastically. The goals in this plan update are ambitious, but having seen what this organization can do time and time again, I have no doubt that we will achieve and exceed expectations over the next 10 years!
Metcalf emphasized that implementing the update will take continuous resources and effort.
“The workplan accounts for maintaining the quality of existing remnants and restorations while expanding the quantity of acres restored,” he said. “To continue doing both, capacity needs to increase accordingly. There’s a team of dedicated people across JCPRD including the Natural Resources Team, park staff, and others who put lots of passion, labor, and expertise into monitoring and stewarding JCPRD’s parkland. Beyond staff, we have an ecosystem of partners including private contractors, educators, volunteers, and nonprofit organizations that help make the work happen. Under current funding levels, the Natural Resources Team has grown and accomplished a lot while operating in a complex picture, but to obtain the future desired outcomes, the plan illustrates more resources will be needed.”
“This work is challenging and it’s expensive,” added The Parks and Recreation Foundation of Johnson County Executive Director Kelly Blandford. “Not to do it really would be much more costly in the end. The foundation chose to prioritize this work in our five-year strategic plan for opportunities to leverage existing funding and partnerships. In the last few years, we’ve been able to support educational conferences and workshops, help put prairie restoration on the ground, and build the capacity of our small but mighty team with our fantastic internship program.”
The Parks and Recreation Foundation of Johnson County plays a crucial role in the fulfillment of JCPRD’s natural resource efforts, and seeks support for these projects through corporate and private funding. Those interested in supporting this program should contact Blandford by email kelly.blandford@jocogov.org or by phone at 913-826-3448.
