Jack McLean Park

Jack McLean Park

Introduction

Jack L. Mclean Park, situated along 700 Paul Russell Road, offers a variety of services. The park is on a 52-acre piece of land with passive and active recreation facilities. The name of the park comes from the former city commissioner Jack L. McLean Jr. The commissioner contributed to the development and the acquisition of the former Southside Park. The Jack L. McLean park dedication was on the 3^rd of November 2004. The park has employees who ensure everything is operational every day. There are various operations necessary for providing the smooth running of the park. The programming of the park entails both seasonal and daily events. The essay describes the management of the Jack L. McLean Park for its smooth operation.

Human Resource

The Jack L. McLean employees work under the Tallahassee city with access to different online services. A full-time employee in the park requires at least a bachelor’s degree relating to leisure or recreation. The promotion of the employees depends on the level of hard work on the job. The average number of employees working in the park varies depending on the level of activity on a particular day. The employees include directors, program managers, activities managers, and aquatic directors, lecturers who educate the different people visiting the park, scientists, travel guides, naturalists, park rangers, activity specialists, and park service managers. The organization of the employees in the park is dependent on various factors such as the level of skills and specialization. The directors for the parks and recreation, manage, and develop comprehensive recreation programs.

The roles of the different classes of employees in the park vary with the area of specialization. The main goal of the workers is to lead and design leisure activities for groups and individuals visiting the park. The workers organize, plan, and lead recreational activities. They ensure the safety of the people using the park facilities follow the safety rules stipulated to avoid injury. The enforcement of security occurs through the explanation of the rules and instructions to the participants. For visitors with specific needs, the employees modify the existing activities to suit their needs. In case of accidents, the workers have the skills to administer first aid. The employees know their area of specialization, which they use to enlighten the participants. The employees prepare the essential equipment to be used in recreational activities. .

Operations

The smooth operation of the park requires the performance of particular tasks. The administration, supervision of the park programs and activities is one of the main functions essential for the operation of the park. The directors are the people involved in the administrative role of the park. The park takes part in the training and giving instructions on particular tasks such as swimming. Coaching is essential for people who want to participate in activities requiring specialized skills. For instance, participants in the aquatic center need swimming skills. Scheduling, programming, and directing participants and keeping a record of the equipment are crucial activities for the operation of the park. Counseling is an essential task in the park, especially for children and teenagers who want to participate in highly risky activities. The counselors guide the day to day socialization around the park. The park requires funds to run; thus, proper recording of finances is crucial. The park keeps a record of its financial transactions through different financial statements. The park uses these financial statements to raise funds necessary to run the park. Participating in fundraising activities helps the park’s operations to run smoothly.

Programming

The daily routine of the park entails aquatics, golf, camping, and gymnastics. The park has five picnic centers with grills, a playground, two comfort stations, two tennis courts, four basketball courts, two bike trails, 24 fitness trail stations, two sand volleyball courts, 24-hole disc golf course, and horseshoe pits. These are among some of the activities which are open daily for those interested. The park has an air-conditioned gymnasium where individuals can register for daily and weekly exercise routines. The park has a weight room as well as multipurpose rooms that serve various purposes. The multi-purpose room is sometimes used as a classroom for individuals who are training. Other times the room holds meetings and activities involving teenagers.

On the other hand, the aquatic complex has a beach-like zero-depth entry pool. The pool has in-pool play equipment where people can train. The pool is a 22-foot high water slide, eight lanes, 25-yard swimming pool. Activity instructors use the pool to conduct swim lessons; individuals take part in water aerobics, open and lap swimming. There is a bathhouse that is 3949 square feet providing office space, shower facilities, and a lifeguard space for monitoring activities. These daily activities operate from Monday to Saturday between 9:00 am and 9:00 pm. The lap pool opens between 6.00 am to 7.00 am for two lanes. There are other periods during the day when the lap pool is open for any person willing to use.

The park has special events involving groups, public, and private, as well as individuals. The yearly special events held by the park include the celebration of America July 4^th and winter festival. The park permits people to hold special events such as weddings, parties, and family reunions at a fee. Groups can preserve fields for athletic tournaments by following a specified reservation process. Public events allowed in the park include festivals, runs, block parties, and fundraisers. There is a special event form that one should fill in the reservation of the date. The park holds sports events under various categories such as seasonal, youth team sports, aquatics, golf, adult team sports, and swimming.

The aquatic centers offer other services which may either be seasoned or daily. These activities include swim lessons, lifeguard training, water aerobics, pool reservations, and Area Tallahassee Aquatic Club. There are community centers around the park which ensure the security of the visitors. For instance, the Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Affairs Department creates programs and recreational programs around the community. These steps aim at keeping employees, participants, and volunteers free from emotional as well as physical harm. It protects these people from issues such as bullying and discrimination based on color, race, religion, national origin, sexual preference, and sex. The park community educates children and teenagers on various life skills such as cooking.

Funding

The park operates on various sources of revenue, with the main being the funding from the local authority. The fees paid by people hosting events either privately or publicly is a source of funds for the parks. The daily pass for adults costs $4.25, for a senior $3.75, for a child $4.00, aerobics $4.75, and senior aerobics $3.75. The fifteen visit pass costs $ 44.75 for adults, for a senior $36.75, for a child $39.25, aerobics $50.00, and senior aerobics $39.50. A month’s visit pass costs $ 89.25 for adults, for a senior $73.50, for a child $78.50, aerobics $99.75, and senior aerobics $78.75. An annual pass visit is available for adults at $464.25 and $382.25 for a senior only. The park collects these fees and uses them to run the aquatic center equipment and other resources.

The park hosts programs that help in raising funds, which help in its operation. These programs include sports and athletic tournaments, which the participants enter at a fee. Another source of funds is the user fee, which most parks and recreation departments require all their users to pay. They charge these fees in an attempt to recover the program expenses. The park is a city’s project of the ten percent share of the income as generated by the 2000 sales tax revenue by the citizen approved blueprint. The director of the park attends fundraisers that aim at supporting the part financially.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the efficient management of Jack McLean Park is responsible for its smooth operation. The skills and high level of expertise portrayed by the staff members facilitate the day to day running of the Park. The Park provides various programs to the visitors. Some of these programs take place every day, while others occur on special days. The operation of the Park requires the performance of various tasks by the different employees. The local government finances the operations of the park as well as user fees. The federal government should allocate more funds to the Parks as they make the lives of the community members be