Project Overview and Purpose  

The Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB or Borough) is seeking professional consulting services to develop a Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Plan that will guide the development, maintenance, programming, and management of the Borough’s parks and recreation system over a 20-year planning horizon. 

The plan must be practical, data-informed, and implementable within the Borough’s financial and operational capacity. The consultant will tailor all recommendations—including Level of Service (LOS) standards—to the borough’s unique geographic scale, subarctic climate, seasonal use patterns, and lifecycle performance considerations. These include freeze-thaw impacts, seasonal accessibility, operational constraints, and long-term maintenance demands. 

The resulting plan will serve as an adopted element of the FNSB Regional Comprehensive Plan and a primary decision-making tool for capital planning, operational improvements, and long-term investment strategies. 

Scope of Work 

The selected consultant will work collaboratively with FNSB staff to develop a Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Plan that: 

• Establishes a long-term vision, goals, and strategies 

• Defines system-wide Level of Service (LOS) standards 

• Identifies current and future needs for facilities and programs 

• Provides a prioritized and financially feasible capital improvement strategy 

• Includes implementation actions supported by operational and funding analysis 

The planning process should combine data analysis, mapping (GIS data provided by FNSB), comparisons to similar communities, and input from the public to develop recommendations that are practical and fair. 

The consultant will organize Parks and Recreation assets using a clear classification system based on National Recreation and Parks Association (NRPA) guidance and local conditions. This should include both park/site types and facility types grouped by their primary use. 

The classification system should reflect how facilities are used throughout the year by identifying which are used year-round, primarily in winter, or primarily in summer. This framework will be used to develop LOS standards, identify gaps, and guide capital planning. 

Throughout the project, the FNSB’s Parks and Recreation Commission shall act as the project advisory committee.  The consultant shall include in the proposal the proposed number of meetings with the Commission.   

Tasks/Deliverable: FNSB Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Plan  

Description:   

The selected consultant will conduct research and data collection concurrently with an extensive public participation process to prepare a Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Plan. The plan will be based on the existing conditions and status of parks and recreation in the borough and future desires of the community. This plan will serve as a guide for the development, maintenance, and programming for the Borough over a 20-year plan horizon. This planning effort will take high-level parks and recreation-related goals and strategies from the ongoing Regional Comprehensive Planning process the FNSB is currently completing. The final Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Plan will contain policy-level goals, strategies, and implementation actions. The plan will also include recommended standards for parks and facility types based on population and proximity, as well as prioritized capital project recommendations and cost estimates.    

The Plan will consider, but is not limited to, the following topic-based recommendations: 

1. Facilities 

   • Aquatics 

   • Neighborhood Parks  

   • Regional Parks  

   • Special Use Parks and Facilities (e.g., ice arena, cross country ski facility, shooting range) 

   • School Facilities  

   • Athletic Fields 

   • Park space operated by City or non-profit  

2. Programs (youth/family, senior, adaptive, etc.) 

3. Establish NRPA-informed LOS standards tailored to FNSB 

4. Implementation  

Given the desired tasks and deliverables of this project, the consultant will provide a work plan in agreement with the FNSB project manager within one month of the contract award. The consultant will work with the FNSB project manager to establish a project timeline and determine the deadlines for deliverables. 

Please note: Specific deliverables are outlined in the linked RFP.