Ronan City Council stalls parks master plan
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RONAN – Members of the Ronan Parks Board were on the verge of tears during a city council meeting March 12 at Ronan City Hall. Trustees voted 4-2 against the park’s master plan, which is the park’s tool to identify community needs and serves as a guide for the future development of Ronan’s parks, trails, open spaces and recreation facilities. The trustees’ reasoning behind the decision was that they needed more time to look at the plan before making a decision.
“We’ve looked it over and it was approved by other entities before coming to the council,” trustee Ellen Kaphammer said. “We just want to take our time and be careful on the side of caution; nothing is free and we want to do what’s best for the city.”
Kaphammer says she thinks the parks are important, but trustees need to look at other necessities like city streets and water, too.
“We’ve struggled with money, it’s a lot to look at,” Kaphammer noted.
Ronan Parks and Recreation Director Jennifer Rolfsness and the Ronan Parks and Recreation Board have spent more than two years developing the comprehensive plan, and say they feel deflated after multiple failed attempts to have it approved.
In January, the parks board began taking public comment on the plan through an open Facebook page and website. On Feb. 3, the board held a public comment hearing, where they presented the plan and took comments and input from the Ronan City Council. Ten days later, the Parks Board met again with the council, but were asked to come back to the Feb. 27 meeting to update new council members and city employees.
The Parks Board anticipated council adoption of the master plan at the Feb. 27 meeting, but a vote was denied because the plan was not on the agenda. The plan was then put on the agenda for the March 12 meeting. The city’s public works department called a special meeting on March 5 to discuss comments with the council and parks board, going through the plan line-by-line, and asked the parks board to make changes.
According to Rolfsness, it seemed as though a final decision was going to be made March 12. All the requested changes from trustees were in place, but doubts about the project surfaced following review of a letter addressed to Mayor Kim Aipperspach from John Swenson received March 6.
Playcore, a company referenced in the master plan, has partnered with Pathways for Play and Robin C. Moore, a vocal proponent of Agenda 21. Swenson’s letter warned trustees that members of Playcore are “facilitators of the implementation of the doctrines of Agenda 21.” Agenda 21 is a comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the United Nations System, governments, and major groups in every area in which humans have impact on the environment.
Rolfsness says she had never heard of Agenda 21, and used Google on her phone during the meeting to look it up.
Swenson says Agenda 21 is a document that outlines a plan to change laws and ordinances to become compliant with their environmental objectives.
“Being compliant with Agenda 21 means that the U.S. Constitution must necessarily be violated; otherwise you can not be in compliance with its doctrines,” Swenson said in the letter. “The ‘oath of office’ which you have taken commits you to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the Montana State Constitution, a violation of which subjects you to removal of office and possible charges of perjury.”
Swenson claims agenda 21 is trying to indoctrinate children and any others into the belief system of “Gaia,” the Greek earth goddess, and that incorporating Pathways for Play into the Ronan Parks would be “a systematic approach to change the belief systems of local children and their parents.”
Swenson sent the letter March 6 to all trustees except Robert McCrea. The Ronan Parks Board did not receive a copy.
Swenson’s letter states: “This plan is one of sectarian or religious indoctrination of the youth, and any other who will listen into the belief system of ‘Gaia,’ or the Greek earth goddess. This change in belief systems is important to the overall success of Agenda 21, and is a purposeful plan to eliminate the current belief systems that may exist or that are taught at home in favor of one created for them by the United Nations.”
The Ronan Parks Master Plan mentions Pathways for Play on page 27 of the document, under the three to five-year recommendations, which the plan says are specific goals needed to meet existing and future park and recreation needs in the Ronan area.
The master plan states: “work with Playcore and Gametime on the design, development and installation of Ronan synergist play pockets and trails throughout the park.”
“Playcore doesn’t provide any funding, nor did we say we were going to seek out funding from them,” Rolfsness said.
Swenson goes on in his letter, “…if you pass the park’s master plan as it is, which includes elements of the indoctrination plan, you will be in violation of your oath of office.”
Rolfsness says the plan has nothing to do with changing anyone’s beliefs; it’s simply a plan for where the Ronan Parks need to be in five to 15 years down the road.
“We need a plan for the future,” she said. “(We need to address) what issues are facing our community and kids, and how can we be a part of the solution. We definitely need a plan to move forward, so we know where we’re going.”
The U.S. Highway 93 project will be coming through Ronan in a few years, which will put two lanes of southbound traffic along First Avenue, bordering the city park.
“If we don’t have a plan and the highway comes through, we’ll have to deal with the highway then,” park board member Mark Nelson said. “We’ll have to be reactive to what they say and do; the park will lose parking and ways for kids to get to the park. It would be detrimental to the park and the town.”
Rolfsness says the parks board has presented the plan several times, reopened public comment to encourage the council to read the plan, and is confused as to why the plan continues to be put aside.
“(The City Council) said at the March 5 meeting to come back with the required changes, we asked for questions and comments, and how they felt,” Rolfsness said. “They didn’t have any.”
After spending countless hours compiling the plan over the past few years, park board members don’t want all their hard work to go to waste. They argue that having a plan is better than not having a plan.
“I feel very discouraged,” park board member Ronna Walchuk said. “The city is doing a real disservice to the community.”
“I’m sad and confused because there is no plan for the future,” Eleanor Vizcarra added.
Parks board members are concerned the plan will continue to be put on the back burner, and think the city hopes it will just go away.
“So far we’re in the ‘maybe’ zone,” Nelson added. “I would be happy with a ‘yes’ or ‘no.’”
The master plan is purely a conceptual document at this point with nothing concrete, Rolfsness added, stating the parks board just needs the council to agree to the plan to move forward.
Along with being a member of the parks board, Vizcarra serves as the co-chair for the annual Women 4 Wellness health fair event, and says there is cause for concern for the health of youngsters. She explained that research suggests there is a good possibility that the life spans of younger generations will be shorter than their parents.’
“It’s incredible to think of,” Vizcarra said. “I was excited about creating something to take children outside. The hospital, healthcare, citizens, Ronan Chamber, Tribes, State and County are all backing the project. I was hoping the enthusiasm would be the same with the city council. (Preventative measures are) a key factor for our kids.”
The Ronan Parks Master Plan has been put on the March 26 Ronan City Council Agenda.
