To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Breyana Brandt, Parks & Recreation Director
Prepared By: Ali Koenig, Parks Planning Manager
TITLE:
Title
Harvest Park Project Community Engagement Update
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Receive a presentation on preliminary community engagement results from the Harvest Park Project which includes (1) summary of completed engagement efforts; (2) major findings; and (3) next steps for conceptual planning; and provide direction to staff.
Body
DISCUSSION:
v Project Background
The City of Napa has initiated a landmark project to redevelop the former Harvest Middle School property (“Property”) - recently acquired in part by Measure G funds - into a new public recreation and aquatics center for the community (“Project”). To advance this Project, on May 5, 2026, City Council awarded an architectural firm with experience in consensus-driven and comprehensive planning and design services to work collaboratively with City staff, i.e. Noll & Tam Architects <https://www.nollandtam.com/> (“Project Team”).
In preparation for this Project, the City completed initial public outreach in 2025 with Probolsky Research <https://www.probolskyresearch.com/> (“Phase I Community Engagement”). This was a multi-faceted, statistically-valid initiative to assess citywide interests related to parks, recreation facilities, programming, special events and marketing. Overall, Phase I Community Engagement garnered valuable input related to community desires for parks and recreation and provided a strong baseline direction for the Project's design, including:
• Prioritize existing facility gaps in Napa’s parks and recreation system; by including recreation facilities typical to comparable communities, primarily:
o Aquatic Facilities, including Pools and Splash Pads
o Multi-use Indoor and Outdoor Spaces
o Sport Fields
o Sport Courts, and
o Recreation Gym;
• Design flexible, multi-use facilities for all generations;
• Develop citywide community gathering spaces; and
• Reach Napa’s diverse communities with equity and inclusion.
As a result of the various abovementioned planning steps, the City launched a site-specific community engagement effort (“Phase II Community Engagement”) in June 2026 to provide an additional data layer of community desires related to key facilities identified in Phase I Community Engagement. Notably, this engagement methodology was extensive and comprehensive to understand opportunities for the Property and to support the City’s values of transparency and inclusivity.
v Completed Phase II Community Engagement Efforts
Phase II Community Engagement encompassed multiple outreach efforts to reach the general Napa population, diverse demographics, and recreational users. Key goals included:
1. Capture community feedback on recreational facilities and programming options, both indoor and outdoor, to gather feedback on concept design options.
2. Empower community members by providing opportunities for Napa’s diverse population to share their voices and perspectives about community needs.
3. Create working partnerships with community groups, community-serving organizations, and other key partners that engender trust and collaboration.
4. Maintain transparency and a productive two-way communications program that puts public participation and community engagement at the forefront of the planning process.
To achieve the goals above, the Project Team implemented the following tactical plan:
1. Community Scan - Identify key community partners and assemble a list of businesses, community-based organizations (CBOs), and other important institutions to be considered in community outreach.
2. Project Partners - Engage trusted community project partners (such as CBOs or community leaders) that can serve to engage local constituents, help disseminate program information, and collaborate on new program development.
3. Website - Establish a website to act as a central information portal: <https://www.cityofnapa.org/harvestparkproject>
4. Online Interest Form - Gather participant information for Community Partner Meetings and Public Meetings.
5. Community Notification -
a. Distribute citywide postcard (38,000 households), flyers, canvassing, and email informing the public of engagement opportunities.
b. Lead a multi-faceted community awareness campaign with the City Manager’s Office:
i. Social Media Updates
ii. Press Releases to Local Newspapers
iii. Local Radio spotlights
iv. Text Updates (For opt-in users)
v. Public Information Desks and TVs (e.g. Senior Center, Finance, Housing)
vi. Local Community Boards
6. City Staff Interviews - Meet with key personnel from the City of Napa to gain in-depth information from local experts.
7. Community Pop-ups - Participate in public events or venues to communicate directly with Napa residents, gather data, and generate further engagement.
a. August 4, 2026, National Night Out
b. Aug 21, 2026, Puertas Abiertas
c. Aug 15, 2026, Lola’s Market
d. August 15, 2026, Saturday Napa Farmer’s Market
e. Aug 30, Sunday Local Churches
8. Focus Group Meetings with Community Partners - Facilitate small-group discussions with specific demographic and interest groups meant to generate more nuanced understandings of community preferences, including:
a. Immediate Neighborhood
b. Seniors
c. Parents & Families with young children (12 & under)
d. Teens
e. Youth & Adults with Disabilities
f. City Scholarship Families (aquatics classes)
g. Sustainability & Environmental Interest
h. Lower-income populations
i. Hispanic/Spanish-language
j. Recreation-focused groups (i.e. aquatics, sports fields, sports courts, rec gym users)
9. Public Meetings - Organize large-group citywide meetings meant to inform wide swaths of the Napa public and solicit general feedback.
a. August 18, 2026, in-person City Council meeting at Napa City Hall - City-wide general population
b. August 26, 2026, virtual Town Hall meeting - City-wide general population
c. September 2, 2026, in-person Town Hall Bilingual meeting at the Property
d. September 3, 2026, in-person Town Hall Spanish-language meeting, at the Property
v Phase II Community Engagement Major Findings
Phase II community engagement ran from mid-July to late September 2026 and consisted of 23 meetings/events and an online survey, all of which directly engaged over 900 residents and generated more than 11,000 data points (split roughly at 78% quantitative and 22% qualitative).
As a result of assessing interest in various parks and recreation facilities, the following top community priorities emerged by facility type for the Property:
|
Facility Type |
Emerging Community Priorities |
|
Swimming Pools |
• Open Recreation Swim / Family Swim • Learn to Swim Classes (All Ages & Abilities) • Open Lap Swimming • Water Fitness/Therapy |
|
Splash Pads |
• Spray Tunnel • Overhead Spray Features • Dumping Buckets • Water Soakers |
|
Indoor Recreational Uses |
• Community Gathering/Special Events • Movement Classes • Flexible Classrooms/Meeting Rooms • Learn-to-Play Indoor Sports/Open Gym |
|
Outdoor Recreational Uses |
• Walking Loops • Community Gathering • Climate Mitigation Landscaping / Cooling Features • Picnic Areas/Park Seating |
|
Recreational Fields |
• Soccer • Baseball • Softball / Little League |
|
Recreational Courts |
• Basketball • Pickleball • Tennis • Volleyball |
In addition to recreation programming findings, the City explored sustainability strategies with a dedicated focus group. This yielded opportunities to consider for concept design including:
• Photovoltaic (PV) Systems
• Tree Canopy Shading Strategies
• Sustainable Building Design/Retrofits & Recreation Facility Materials
• Native / Regionally Appropriate Planting
Overall, Phase II Community Engagement findings reinforced statistically-valid findings from Phase I Community Engagement and supported the projects goals of developing a multi-use, multi-purpose, and flexible space that serves a variety of recreational needs for the community. The Project Team will continue to evaluate the Phase II Community Engagement dataset to identify community benefit opportunities for the Project during concept development.
v Next steps for Conceptual Planning
These community engagement findings establish and verify community priorities, insights, and values. As the next step, the Project Team is launching concept development to advance two Design Alternatives for further vetting with Council and the community. It is estimated that the two Design Alternatives will be ready for community review in February/March 2027. The project website will continue to be a key source for information and engagement: cityofnapa.org/harvestproject.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
None. City Council awarded the Project’s design and planning services to Noll & Tam Architects on May 5, 2026. Conceptual plans and associated budgets are slated for 2027 City Council meetings.
CEQA:
The Parks and Recreation Services Director has determined that the Recommended Action described in this Agenda Report is not in-and-of-itself a “project” (pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378) since it does not result in a physical change in the environment.
However, the Recommended Action is part of a larger project that will be subject to environmental review in accordance with CEQA at the “earliest feasible time” prior to “approval” consistent with CEQA Guidelines Sections 15004 and 15352. The larger project is future development of the Harvest property into a public park, and staff plans to bring back a CEQA analysis to Council during the design development and planning process.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
None.
NOTIFICATION:
Community engagement for the Harvest Park Project was advertised to local residents through a variety of print and digital methods in both English and Spanish including City-wide newsletters, social media, fall recreation guide, direct outreach to organizations/individuals, flyers, as well as a direct mailer to all households.