Lewisville City Council adopts three-pronged Healthy Infrastructure Plan for parks, trails, and urban tree canopy

Lewisville City Council met on Monday, Feb. 20 to adopt the Healthy Infrastructure Plan, which is a three-pronged master plan that includes parks, trails and the urban tree canopy.

City council and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) approved an update to the current Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan in March 2018. In order for the city of Lewisville to maintain eligibility for park development grants, the plan must be renewed every 10 years and updated every five years or when a significant change impacts city operations and service delivery.

For the city of Lewisville, significant changes included the annexation of Castle Hills and in November 2021, city council approved an agreement with Halff Associates and the University of North Texas to assist in the development of a Health Infrastructure Plan.

“We are required to do this Parks and Open Space update, but this is well beyond what we’re required to do,” said Lewisville City Councilwoman Kristin Green. “This plan is something that I’m really proud of and something I think staff should be extremely proud of. This is the new thing and we’re out in front and I’m just really proud for Lewisville to be out in front on this.”

Upon its adoption, the development of the Healthy Infrastructure Plan will have taken 18 months. Explore More Lewisville is a Healthy Infrastructure Plan that aims to offer Lewisville residents a range of healthy opportunities to play, explore, and connect. Through extensive community engagement, analysis of the current parks and open space system, and research of industry trends and standards, a comprehensive master plan has been created to guide the development and management of Lewisville’s parks, trails, and urban tree canopy for the next decade.

The plan assesses the existing system in Lewisville and presents a range of initiatives and recommendations to enhance the system for all residents. These assessments were based on community input, best practices, and innovations in healthy infrastructure.

An implementation action plan has been developed to guide future expenditures for parks and recreation, trail infrastructure, tree canopy investments, and open space considerations, with a specific goal of providing a quality park within a 10-minute walk of every resident.

The plan adheres to the requirements of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies for grant funding and agency accreditation.

The final draft of the plan was presented to the public during an open house prior to the joint planning and zoning commission and park board meeting held on Jan. 11. Both boards recommended the adoption of the plan to the city council.

A copy of the draft plan has been available on the parks and recreation department’s website since Jan. 11.