Page 5 - 2022 Annual Report

UNIQUE PARK SYSTEM: What BREC Did Really Well in 2022
Going for the gold
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• Winning the National Park and Recreation Agency (NRPA) Gold Medal for the third time, meaning BREC is the number one park system in the nation for excellence in management of parks and recreation.
• Celebrating and sharing the Gold Medal with the public at events, programs, parades, meetings of professional organizations and more.
• Commemorating BREC’s 75th anniversary of operations with more than 1,300 attendees at Independence Community Park, the most centrally located park in the parish.
• Implementing a community engagement plan that will improve BREC’s already robust efforts to include the public in important decisions regarding park renovation, event and program offerings, maintenance practices and administrative practices.
• Serving 1,277,767 visitors to facilities and events requiring registration or admission, a 17.6% increase over 2021 and exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
• Including input from the public and staff in a year-long project to reimagine BREC’s website.
• Managing 82 capital improvement and system-wide planning projects in the 8th year of the Imagine Your Parks 2 plan.
• Operating 39 award-winning summer camps at 30 locations with 9 other camps provided and/or hosted with community partners.
• Launching a campaign and web page to educate the community about green infrastructure efforts to mitigate flooding across EBR Parish.
• Identifying a record 607 species at the 2022 BioBlitz at Forest Community Park with BREC staff, local scientists and conservation enthusiasts.
• Providing nearly 16,000 training courses to BREC staff through online and in-person offerings through the newly created BREC University.