City of Piedmont
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
DATE: July 6, 2026
TO: Mayor and Council
FROM: Rosanna Bayon Moore, City Administrator
SUBJECT: Consideration of the Acceptance of the Sustainable Parks Management Plan Prepared by WRT Design
RECOMMENDATION
Accept the Sustainable Parks Management Plan prepared by WRT Design.
BACKGROUND
Piedmont parks are public assets that serve a wide range of active and passive uses. As stewards of public resources, the City looks to approach how park properties are maintained and managed in a responsible and sustainable manner for the public’s long term public enjoyment.
The Park Commission began discussing sustainable practices in Piedmont parks at various meetings in 2024, with a recommendation to City Council to allocate funding for a Sustainable Parks Management Plan in the FY24/25 budget.
The City’s consultant, WRT Design (WRT), has completed its assessment of maintenance practices and provided recommendations. As directed by the City Council at its meeting on April 6, 2025, the final report also considers the impact of recreational uses on park resources.
The Plan addresses both current and proposed maintenance practices, as well as guidelines and strategies for park uses to encourage best management practices and limit negative impacts on park resources.
DISCUSSION
On May 22, 2025, City staff invited proposals for the preparation of a Sustainable Parks Management Plan. The contract to perform these services was awarded to WRT on August 5, 2025. The scope of services performed as part of this effort includes the following tasks:
• Develop guiding principles that will enhance and preserve natural ecosystems, minimize environmental impacts, efficiently use resources and comply with local, state and federal environmental regulations.
• Review and consider existing City documents including the General Plan and City ordinances, Climate Action Plan, Landscape Maintenance Contract, Local Hazard Mitigation Plan. Integrated Pest Management Plan, Tree Inventory, Rescape Guiding Principles, and best management practices for park uses. • Engage stakeholders, including tabled events at the Harvest Festival, four (4) pop-up events in the parks, and an online survey with over 500 people engaged in providing feedback.
• Assess current maintenance and park practices, including interviewing Public Works maintenance staff, and the City’s landscape maintenance contractor, Terra Landscape, and conduct tours of Piedmont parks.
• Identify key challenges and future considerations based on results from community outreach efforts.
• Develop a Final Plan that provides guidelines to ensure vibrant and well-maintained parks both now and in the future.
The Park Commission received presentations by WRT at their February 4, 2026 and June 3, 2026 meetings, and the Recreation Commission received an update from Parks Project Manager, Nancy Kent, at their June 17, 2026 meeting.
CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS
The goal of the Management Plan is to establish best practices to protect the spaces and landscapes that make Piedmont’s parks special, improve the systems and practices needed to care for them, and ensure these spaces continue to serve the community for generations to come. The report provides recommendations for how the City can achieve this goal.
The final report provides guidance for future budgeting, work planning, and capital improvement decisions while remaining flexible enough to respond to changing conditions, funding opportunities, and community needs. Given limited resources and competing priorities, not all recommendations can be implemented simultaneously.
Staff will determine how best to incorporate recommendations as the City implements future projects. Some of the recommendations require significant capital investment, specialized expertise, regulatory coordination, or long-term planning. The proposed implementation horizons are intended to provide flexible guidance for future budgeting, work planning, and capital improvement programming, rather than establish fixed deadlines. Implementation will align available funding, staffing capacity, emerging needs, partnership opportunities, grant funding, and evolving community priorities.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
As the Plan will be used by staff to inform future projects, the Plan itself will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment. This action is not a “project” per CEQA Guidelines Section 15378 (b)(5).
FISCAL CONSIDERATIONS
Agenda Report Page2
No fiscal impact is associated with acceptance of the final report.
CITY ATTORNEY REVIEW
This staff report was reviewed by the City Attorney.
Prepared by: Daniel Gonzales, Director of Public Works
Nancy Kent, Parks and Project Manager
ATTACHMENTS:
• Sustainable Parks Management Plan
• Appendices
Agenda Report Page3