NOVA Parks News
NOVA Parks Releases 5-Year Strategic Plan
NOVA Parks releases its final 2023-2027 Strategic Plan. The plan provides goals and objectives to help guide improvements, operations, conservation, and services in NOVA Parks over the next five years. Ninety-two percent of survey respondents indicated that NOVA Parks' strategic plan was important or very important to the Northern Virginia region.
NOVA PARKS RELEASES 5-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN
For Immediate Release: August 8, 2022
NOVA Parks releases its final 2023-2027 Strategic Plan. The plan provides goals and objectives to help guide improvements, operations, conservation, and services in NOVA Parks over the next five years.
Over the course of four weeks, NOVA Parks solicited public input about its draft 2023-2027 Strategic Plan through partners, stakeholders, social media and the news media. The result was more than 4,124 webpage views with 92% of survey respondents indicating that NOVA Parks' strategic plan was important or very important to the Northern Virginia region. Themes that emerged about the public's impression of the overall plan include: comprehensive; ambitious; thorough; great; impressive; focused; and necessary. The feedback received was incorporated and the plan was adopted by NOVA Parks' Board of Directors at their regular meeting on July 21, 2022.
"NOVA Parks was founded as our region's first conservation organization sixty-three years ago with a mission to create truly exceptional places open to all people,” said NOVA Parks Board Chair Cate Magennis Wyatt. “This plan exemplifies this vision with a focus on environmental excellence and a desire to be open and welcoming to everyone in our community.”
By 2027, NOVA Parks aims to increase parkland; enhance park amenities; offer new services; serve more community members; create a sense of belonging; offset carbon; conserve energy; become a national brand; attract and retain top-quality employees; and further develop the systems to support and grow this dynamic agency. Highlights of the plan include:
- Plant over 50,000 trees creating new areas of forest
- Create or improve trails with a focus on sustainability and an investment of over $6 million
- Create a W&OD Visitor Center
- Create a new wetland park for environmental education and sustainability
- Invest in electric vehicles and mowers, and take other steps to lower carbon footprint
- Add five new parkland properties, and manage existing parkland to better sequester carbon
- Expand cultural events and festivals
- Lead effort to commemorate the Declaration of Independence with interpretive efforts focused on liberty, justice, and freedom
- Expand partnerships with community groups
- Grow entrepreneurial revenues to support park improvements
- Create a team and programs that are reflective of our changing and diverse community
“The Audubon Society of Northern Virginia appreciates the focus NOVA Parks has placed on protecting our natural environment, including its plan to restore park properties with native plants,” said Tom Blackburn, President of the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia. “As the stewards of a growing park system of over 12,350 acres of parkland, NOVA Parks’ Strategic Plan demonstrates a commitment to habitat conservation and restoration and expanding public lands in our region."
Visit novaparks.com/StrategicPlan to view or download the final 2023-2027 Strategic Plan.
About NOVA Parks
Founded in 1959 as a conservation organization, NOVA Parks (Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority) is the only regional park authority in Virginia. It represents three Northern Virginia counties and three cities—Arlington County, Fairfax County, Loudoun County, the City of Alexandria, the City of Falls Church, and the City of Fairfax. The regional agency manages 34 parks with 12,335 acres of parkland, including waterparks, golf courses, campsites, historic sites, event venues, boat launches, annual holiday light shows, and a high adventure ropes course.
