A lot has happened since Camas officials approved a master plan for the city’s historic Crown Park in November 2018.
In the three years since the master plan’s unveiling, the city has weathered not only a two-year global pandemic but also public outcry over the 2019 demolition of the historic Crown Park swimming pool; a 90-10 vote against the city’s community-aquatics center bond proposal; the election – and then unexpected resignation – of a write-in mayoral candidate; the retirement of longtime parks manager Jerry Acheson in December 2020; and the hiring of the city’s current Parks and Recreation director, Trang Lam, in early 2021.
Lam hit the ground running January 2021, jumping straight into the initial phases of a six-year Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces (PROS) Comprehensive Plan update, which will help guide the development and maintenance of Camas’ parks, green spaces and recreation areas through 2028.
Now, Lam is ready to tackle the Crown Park Master Plan.
In mid-November, Lam updated the Camas City Council on the master plan and said some of the initial cost estimates have changed since consultants worked on the plan in 2017 and 2018.
“The estimate in 2018 for all of the features was $5.6 million, now it’s closer to $6.2 million,” Lam said.