Washington’s City Council could adopt the city’s new parks and recreation comprehensive master plan during its meeting Monday.

The item is on the council’s tentative agenda. A $45,000 Community Transformation Grant and $5,000 from the city were used to pay for development of the plan. The plan was developed by Rivers & Associates.

Council members and the mayor have been reviewing the proposed plan for about a month. They heard a presentation about the plan during the council’s Feb. 10 meeting. The council postponed acting on the proposal until it had enough time to review it.

The plan, if adopted, will guide the city in how it provides parks and recreational facilities, where new facilities might go, what to do with existing facilities and how to pay for new and/or expanded facilities. The plan is the product of several public-input sessions and the work of the city’s Recreation Advisory Committee.

“The main purpose of the Parks and Recreation Comprehensive Master Plan is to improve the recreational opportunities and quality of life for all citizens of Washington by identifying unmet needs,” reads the introduction to the proposed plan. “The Plan assesses the existing system of parks, facilities and programs of the City and makes recommendations for future development. It is meant to be used as a working guide or framework which will evolve over time through regular updates and public input.”

The draft includes an inventory and assessment of the city’s existing parks and recreation facilities and related programs.

The draft notes that the city exceeds national and state standards when it comes to combined parkland. The city has 144.6 acres of public parkland, with the average size of one of its parks at 5.56 acres. But when it comes to “mini-parks” and district/regional parks, the city comes up short. According to the national parks and recreation guidelines of the National Park and Recreation Association, the city’s biggest need when it comes to parks and recreation is additional playgrounds.

The council meets at 5:30 p.m. Monday in the Council Chambers in the Municipal Building, 102 E. Second St. To view the council’s agenda for a specific meeting, visit the city’s web­site at www.washingtonnc.gov, click “Government” then “City Council” heading, then click “Meeting Agendas” on the menu to the right. Then click on the date for the appropriate agenda.