Photo Credit: Oakland, MI Parks and Recreation Department
Editor’s Note: This column, “LBWA” (Leadership By Wandering Around), is based on the premise that, in order to find out what’s going on in the field, a parks and rec leader has to leave his or her desk and “wander around” the area of operations, talk to people, ask questions, and kick around ideas with the individuals in the thick of delivering services to the public. So the author will bring up issues and ask the leaders among the readership to share their knowledge and experiences.
When the PRB editor told me that the November issue was going to be a “numbers” issue and suggested I try to develop a standard parks-maintenance cost model, I was faced with a dilemma.
On the one hand, I thought it was a great idea and would provide a useful tool for someone who might be starting or revamping a maintenance plan.
On the other hand, I wondered how I was going to provide a useful tool to gauge maintenance costs when there are so many variables, such as: