Task Force Activities Current Background Facility & Service Standards Outreach Current The task force met on August 6, 2004 for one last time. This last meeting occurred at the Corps HQ in Washington D.C. with its purpose to brief Mike White, Chief, Operations Directorate of Civil Works. The briefing presentation was the final chapter for the group's four years together developing this document. The facility standards document has been approved by all elements within the organization and is ready for publication. Left to Right: Chiway Hsiung- Architect New England District Jeff Rose- Chief Park Ranger Rock Island District, Saylorville Lake Roy Proffitt- Area Manager Sacramento District- Now retired Mike Miller- Chief of Operations Little Rock District Mike White- Chief, Operations Directorate of Civil Works HQ Dr. Bonnie Bryson- Park Ranger Louisville District Office Jim Davis- Operations Manager Pomme de Terre Lake Kansas City District Scott Jackson- Research Biologist ERDC Judy Rice- Recreation Business Line Manager, HQ Not pictured: John Marnell Area Manager Tulsa District and George Tabb HQ Background A task force chaired by Mike Miller, Chief of Operations, Little Rock District was composed of NRM team members who collectively represented a wealth of field-level experience in Corps recreation facilities and services management. This group was charged to assist the NRM Branch in the development of recreation facility and services standards. The objective was to develop recreation facility standards to be applied to new construction or areas that were being rehabilitated no matter how large or small. Another task was to develop customer service standards that would focus on our customers, establish a baseline of current customer satisfaction and be a means to track trends over time. That information can then be used to develop plans and budgets for the modernization of recreation areas. Back to Top Facility & Service Standards The primary product that the the Recreation Facilities Standards was charged with delivering was facility and service standards for Corps recreation areas. The Standards Subcommittee guided this effort. The goal was the establishment of national recreation facility design standards, which will reduce the costs associated with facility design, and also provide better facilities to our customers, which can be more efficiently maintained. A field level professional engineer and an architect provided by the HQUSACE Engineering Division are assisted in this effort by reviewing and evaluating plans received in response to a data call for existing designs. Standard designs of good recreation facilities currently in use at the District or project level will continue to be posted in this Website's Good Enough to Share section so that others can use them. Back to Top Outreach An important component of the modernization initiative included outreach activities that provided customer feedback to make sure that our modernization efforts met the needs of our customers, and gave full consideration to demographic trends (i.e., the "Graying of America" and increases in ethnic populations), legislative requirements, new technology and equipment, and concerns for safety affecting recreation use at our projects. Public Outreach Public outreach activities included informal interviews conducted with visitors at recreation areas scheduled for modernization in FY2001. A Visitor Profile format was developed to record information gathered in the informal interviews. Instructions for conducting the informal interviews and recording the results on the Visitor Profile form were also provided. Industry/Stakeholders Outreach Another important outreach activity was to contact stakeholders and representatives of the recreation industry to solicit their input on the Corps modernization initiative. A format was developed to guide the discussion and record their comments. Examples of the results from these contacts are provided of the responses received from Leave No Trace, Westrec Marinas, Inc., and States Organization for Boating Access. Ethnic Outreach Additional outreach activities will improve our understanding of existing and potential patterns of ethnic minority use of Corps projects. The information gathered through our outreach activities can help the Corps to improve service to ethnic minority recreation visitors and reduce participation barriers for potential ethnic minority visitors to Corps projects. Specific aspects of customer service to be addressed include: facilities, recreation/interpretive programs, activities, fees, public information, other communications, accessibility and any other relevant aspects of the Corps recreation program identified. Ethnic groups to be addressed include: Hispanic, African American, Asian American and Native American. Texas A&M Experiment Station (TAEX) to is to conduct the work in collaboration with university cooperators in regions included in the effort. Back to Top Item restricted to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and will open in a new window.

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