Scott Thomas is pleased Covington residents are paying attention.

Last week Thomas, the city’s parks and recreation director, along with his staff and a consultant hosted a public meeting to talk to residents about Covington’s Parks, Recreation and Open Space (PROS) plan.

The PROS plan will serve as a to do list for development of the city’s parks and recreation facilities and programs during the next six years, Thomas explained.

“That meeting was really rewarding because we had the largest turnout that we’ve had of the three public meetings,” Thomas said. “It’s good that people are learning this planning process is taking place and as they found out more they become interested and come (to the meetings).”

Not only have residents shown a keen interest, Thomas said, they’re really on the ball.

“Our consultant was very clever,” he said. “He purposely left some items off the board to see if people would notice and they did.”

Up on a board, top parks and recreation priorities were listed, Thomas said.

“With this meeting we ended data collection and started to outline where we would go,” he said. “We got good feedback that we did capture what the community’s priorities were. I didn’t talk to anybody at that meeting who didn’t agree with what we had up on that board.”

Residents have told the city through a survey and a pair of community meetings held last fall that they “value walking and biking trails” and there is a desire for large community parks.

“That reinforces our efforts with Covington Community Park,” Thomas said. “They like community events and festivals like the tree lighting ceremony.”

Residents also like open public swims at the Covington Aquatic Center and attending Covington Days.

The next step is to finish up the draft PROS plan.

“We’re taking this guidance and we’re putting it into writing,” Thomas said. “You try to take these ideas and put them down in a concise message.”

Next week the plan goes to the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission who will forward it to the City Council with its recommendations. The council will have March and April to look over the plan, provide feedback, with the goal to adopt it in May.

For the past year Thomas has been working on the PROS plan while also working on a master plan for Covington Community Park located at 180th Avenue Southeast and Southeast 240th Street.

The site is about 30 acres and is a collection of four parcels purchased by the city in 2003 and then brought into King County’s urban growth boundary in 2004. It was annexed into the city in 2008.

Thomas said the plan for the Community Park “is moving along nicely.”

“We figured out the kinds of things we wanted there,” he said. “There’s lots of constraints on the property because of wetlands and there’s an open space easement. Even though 30 acres seems like a lot of park, it took some effort to get everything we wanted on the property in the places they’re allowed.”

About 12 acres on the southwest portion of the site must be developed as passive recreation, so things like trails and educational interpretative uses, as it is sensitive wetlands associated with the Little Soos Creek area.

“For the last year we’ve been collecting more data and entering the concept into the computer aided design, which really tests (the concept),” Thomas said. “Amazingly, everything fit essentially in the same place and in the same configuration we had it in the concept plan. Now we have reassurance that the concept works and that you can actually do all this on the property.”

The City Council will have an opportunity to get feedback on the plan for the Community Park later this month.

“The design of the whole park will essentially stop at this level except for phase one construction,” Thomas said.

Next Thomas and his staff will work on getting funding through grants and the state Legislature.

Having both plans developed helps the city get funding.

“If we get the funding, we would start construction next summer, plan the grass for the soccer field in the fall,” Thomas said. “Then in about June of 2012 we’d have an active soccer field. The city is 13 years old now and doesn’t have any sports fields, yet, so it seems a little overdue. So, we’re pushing hard to have that available to the community.”

Thomas said that there is still time in the process for residents to comment on the PROS plan and the Community Park plan.

Covington will host a Community Park plan meeting at 6:45 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 16 at Covington City Hall while feedback will continue to be accepted on the PROS plan at the Parks and Recreation Commission and City Council meetings in the coming months.

“I just want to make sure that people feel invited to come and comment on both items,” Thomas said. “There is still time to participate. We still want people to participate. We want them to feel invested in the final product.”