The Legacy Plan includes information on present day park and recreation trends, demographic developments, existing park and recreation conditions, an analysis of community needs and desires, an updated Parks Capital Facility Program and a list of potential future capital projects.
Legacy Plan 2020: Parks, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan
Read the adopted Legacy Plan to see the City of Lakewood priorities around the development and use of its parks and open space.
Announcements
Find details about upcoming community engagement opportunities, ways to request a presentation for your organization and key updates on the plan development process here.
Attend one of these upcoming events, or meetings to learn more. More meetings will be added throughout the update process:
- Lakewood Farmers Market: Tuesdays, June 3-Aug. 26, 2-7 p.m., Fort Steilacoom Park
- SummerFEST: Saturday, July 19, 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Fort Steilacoom Park
- Virtual Open House: July 24, 5-6:30 p.m. Meeting details will be shared closer to the event.
- National Night Out: Aug. 5, 2025, location and time TBD
How the plan is used
The Legacy Plan is used in the following ways:
A strategic guide:
The Legacy Plan acts as a foundation for future strategic planning, decision making and visioning exercises. It serves as a guide for elected officials and City personnel in the provision of park, open space and recreation services.
An information provider:
The Legacy Plan provides information on the City’s park, open space and recreation system for elected officials, City personnel, community members and any other interested parties.
To support grant funding:
The Legacy Plan is designed to support grant applications; specifically, the plan is designed to meet the planning requirements of the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO).
To comply with Growth Management Act requirements:
The Legacy Plan complies with Growth Management Act (GMA) requirements and supplements the City’s Comprehensive Plan, specifically RCW 36.70A.020 and Section 3.10.
Legacy Plan history
The Lakewood City Council adopted the first Legacy Plan in 2014. It was a long-term strategic plan crafted to meet the future park and recreation needs of the community.
Five years after adoption, the city embarked on a public outreach campaign as part of a larger effort to update the plan to ensure the document remained timely and reflective of the needs and desires of the community. Outreach included attendance at various public events to capture resident voices, as well as hosting open houses and stakeholder meetings.
The city reviewed local demographic information and park trends as well. Using this information as a springboard, the Legacy Plan 2020 was created and adopted by the Lakewood City Council on May 18, 2020. It identified priorities over a six-year period from 2021 to 2026, as well as served as a long-term strategic guide for the city’s parks and recreation system.
The document is intended for use at the policy level, as well as a tool for day-to-day operational decision making.
The city strongly believes in the power of planning and community-driven processes. The plan was formed based on the aspirations, values and beliefs of the Lakewood community.
The Legacy Plan includes information on present day park and recreation trends, demographic developments, existing park and recreation conditions, an analysis of community needs and desires, an updated Parks Capital Facility Program (PCFP) for 2020-2026 and a list of potential future capital projects.