Phoenix City Council Policy Meeting on Adaptive Recreation Program Update - April 29, 2025
Phoenix City Council Policy Meeting: Adaptive Recreation Program Update
The Phoenix City Council held a policy meeting on April 29, 2025, to receive an update from the Parks and Recreation Department on its adaptive recreation programs, partnerships, and accessibility improvements. The meeting included council member presentations, public comments, and extensive discussion on inclusive programming, park accessibility, and community engagement.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Chelsea Harden (Founder/Executive Director, Heart Center) thanked the Parks and Recreation team for partnering to offer inclusive camps at Camp Collie. She urged families to sign up for summer 2025 sessions, noting that space is still available and camperships (scholarships) are offered.
- Gus Lazar (Vice President/General Manager, Ability 360) expressed gratitude for the partnership, highlighting the reopening of Telephone Pioneer Pool (closed since 2020) and adaptive programs such as wheelchair tennis (40 athletes weekly) and adaptive golf. He noted that one athlete is heading to the LA Paralympics and that the city's adaptive recreation offerings attract residents from other regions.
- Orla (public commenter) attempted to discuss fire response times but was asked to focus on the parks agenda item. The City Manager clarified that no budget update was scheduled for this meeting.
- A fourth public commenter (Annander) was called but no remarks were recorded.
Discussion Items
- Parks and Recreation Adaptive Recreation Program Update – The department presented a comprehensive overview of its inclusive offerings:
- The city operates 188 flatland parks, over 40,000 acres of desert preserve, 33 recreation centers, and 20 pools (summer 2025).
- The Partners Program (since 1988) at South Mountain Community Center serves adults 18+ with developmental disabilities, offering life skills training, fitness, and Special Olympics competitions. Teams recently won first place in basketball and cheerleading.
- Two adaptive recreation coordinator positions have been added, supporting daily programming and state compliance.
- New programs include an adaptive summer camp (launched 2024) and a pending partnership with Paradise Valley High School for open gym sessions (serving 25–40 participants).
- Golf programs partner with Ability 360 and Special Olympics Arizona: Encanto 9/18, Aguila 9, and Papago courses offer adaptive golf clinics and competitions. The Arizona Adaptive Open Championship is held in December with ~75 participants.
- Telephone Pioneer Park (northwest Phoenix) is home to Ability 360's activities (200+ classes/year). The on-site pool will reopen in summer 2025 after closure since 2020.
- Camp Collie (30-acre camp north of Payson) offers overnight experiences for neurodiverse and neurotypical youth. In 2024 it hosted 265 participants; the 2025 goal is 400. Costs range from $175 (3-day) to $275 (5-day) with teen leadership discounts ($100–$150). The Heart Center operates the camp and provides campership scholarships.
- Accessibility improvements funded annually through Phoenix Parks and Preserve Initiative (PPI) and bond funds include ADA upgrades to ramadas, restrooms, playgrounds, and parking. Examples include Mountain View Park, Dreamy Draw Park accessible trails, and the new all-inclusive playground at Encanto Park (opened May 2024) featuring a communications board for non-verbal children.
- $2.2 million in bond funds will renovate the Telephone Pioneer Park recreation center.
- Sensory room at Cesar Chavez Community Center provides calming features for sensory regulation.
- Council members posed questions about:
- Equitable distribution of enhancements across districts (staff noted annual investments in every council district and use of a condition database plus geographic equity in five-year CIP).
- How input from residents with disabilities is gathered (through steering committees, surveys, and master plan processes).
- Coordination with police and alternative response strategies for individuals with disabilities in parks (City Manager Lori mentioned mobile crisis response, Community Assistance Program, training with a self-advocate officer's son, and a smart notification system for 911 callers to identify special needs at an address).
- The impact of federal DEI rollbacks on ADA compliance (staff committed to maintaining current standards and noted PPI funding through 2038).
Key Outcomes
- The presentation was informational; no formal votes were taken.
- Council members expressed strong support for the adaptive recreation programs and directed staff to continue prioritizing equitable access and community outreach.
- Mayor Gallego highlighted the city's leadership in accessible recreation and noted the upcoming 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles as an opportunity to showcase Phoenix's work.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon, welcome to our April 29th, 2025 policy meeting. Will the clerk call the role call the meeting to order and will the clerk call the roll? Councilwoman Guardado. Here Councilwoman Hernandez. Here. Councilwoman Hodge Washington. Here. Councilwoman Pastor. Here. Councilman Robinson. Here. Councilwoman Stark. Here. Councilman Waring. Vice Mayor O'Brien. Mayor Gallego. Here. Thank you. We'll begin with Council presentations and uh information requests. We'll begin with Councilwoman Pastor. Thank you, Mayor. This morning, along with Mayor and Supervisor Gallardo and Phoenix IDA, Titus, Department of Housing, and who else? And you mom, the key partnership. We broke ground or we finished ground and have built 96 new affordable housing units opening up in District 4. It's uh one of a kind partnership because there were so many partners. And most importantly, as a former teacher of that area, um I enjoyed seeing that happening and understanding the need for housing within the area. Uh the greatest challenges that I saw then and end today is finding a safe affordable place to call home. Uh, with access without access of stable housing, so many families were fighting an uphill battle. So it just reminds me how education, housing, and community and government could come together and connect and make it happen. So thank you to all the partners. Next slide. Leslie Roscon, Betty Fairfax High School, Valley Metro designed a wrap. Her art, her art will be on light rail and bus for a year. On June 7th, as we open up the South Central Light Rail, she will be the third uh light rail cart that will have her design on it. And it was so exciting to see her parents uh elated at the fact that she had won and she had received some money. So it's exciting to see our community thrive and things happening within our art. Thank you. Next slide. Thank you to Green Living Magazine and Dory Morales. Sustainability is key, especially in a desert city. Phoenix is investing in being a greener city, tree plantings, expanding urban canopy, transitioning to electric vehicles, public transit, and also the outfit that I wear today is also from Green Living. And you see what we can do once we uh no longer want to wear something and create something new and repurpose it. Um so thank you again. Congratulations to Mayor Gallego, Vice Mayor O'Brien, Councilwoman Stark, Councilwoman Guardado, and our newest colleague, Councilwoman Hernandez. I'm excited to work with all of you as a collective. I know we are continuing to push Phoenix forward together, and it was an exciting day. Thank you and congratulations. Join me on Saturday at Carl Hayden High School at 10 a.m. We will be discussing 27th Avenue and 35th Avenue with the community and public safety. Ongoing plans to improve the area.
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