Currently, Bay City Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) is seeking input from citizens in order to review its 2017 Master Parks Plan.
With only 200 people participating as of Easter weekend, it seems like there isn’t enough interest in what happens in our community.
And really, how hard is it to fill out a survey?
The department is even offering paper copies for those that aren’t exactly technology savvy.
It only took me a little over five minutes to do it myself and I’ve been encouraging everyone in our house to do it, too.
That includes my siblings that live out of town but come down for holidays and other long weekends and assorted family time.
You never know when something new, interesting, or cool pops up and can lead to a fun experience.
And while none of us have children, a lot of my friends do and I’ve been encouraging them to fill it out as well.
After all, these survey responses aren’t just for investing in our future but for the youth of Bay City and Matagorda County, too.
If I sound like a walking billboard or advertisement, my family and friends have just come to expect that for certain issues.
Not to mention, our household is in the loop for events because of the newspaper and try our best to spread the word as much as possible, too.
I’d rather see friends and their children out at events having fun than hearing that something is canceled due to a lack of interest or public response.
Luckily, PARD is pretty thorough at sharing events and activities with us and we provide another platform to reach the public.
After all, not everyone is plugged into social media like Facebook or Instagram and there are still plenty of folks who enjoy the feel of newsprint in their hands.
Even though we live in the ETJ part of the city, growth and other changes also affect us.
Plus, if you’re reading this column every week you know that I have lots of opinions about almost everything.
If not, give me a few minutes and I’ll find something to change.
Outside of that, I’m also of the mind that if you’re given a chance to speak up about something and you don’t take the opportunity given to you, then you shouldn’t be complaining so much later.
I guess that’s just part of how I was raised.
My mom always told us to take the opportunities given to us and to make the most of them – including providing critiques or other forms of feedback.
And while most of it is positive, it helps us to hear the negative and to make appropriate improvements.
It’s also the same stance I take with voting!
But, that’s a whole other column and possible rant since our voter turnout is just as abysmal as this parks survey.
With over 17,600 residents, you’d think we could scare up enough opinions to make an impact.
Here’s to hoping more folks get inspired to make their voices heard and take the PARD survey.
Remember the only way to cause change is to move forward and convey your views and express yourself when given the chance to do so.
