Tory Schalkle Named Chair of the Wayzata Parks and Trails Board
Tory Schalkle recently discussed what’s ahead for the Wayzata City Council’s Parks and Trails Board and his leadership on it.
WAYZATA, MN / ACCESSWIRE / March 30, 2021 / Tory Schalkle is a community enthusiast who is well respected in Wayzata, Minnesota. He was recently selected by peers to lead the Wayzata Parks and Trails Board. A local news organization recently interviewed Tory Schalkle about the nomination and his goals for Wayzata’s parks and trails. A copy of the interview is included below, as well as more information about the Wayzata Parks and Trails Board and Tory Schalkle.
Interviewer: You were recently chosen to lead Wayzata’s Parks & Trails Board. Congratulations! Describe how you were chosen.
Tory Schalkle: Thanks! My peers on the Board nominated me, as I’m not the type to nominate myself. And then they approved it by a vote. I’m really honored to have even been nominated.
Interviewer: I briefly watched the vote. There was almost no hesitation – people nominated you right away, and the whole group seemed excited to have you chair the board. Why you?
Tory Schalkle: Good question. I guess you’ll have to ask them, frankly. I hope my passion and prior work spoke for itself, but I won’t pretend to answer for them.
Interviewer: Why Parks? Why should we care?
Tory Schalkle: AND trails, remember! Well, we’re lucky to have an amazing outdoor portfolio – amazing forests you can hike for hours, two easily accessible beaches, lakefront trails along Lake Minnetonka that can take you all the way to Minneapolis. In addition to connecting with nature, they’re great places to connect with family and, sometimes, bump into neighbors.
They’re also a great value – Wayzata annually spends about $30,000 per mile of road and $400 per police call, but only about $1 per use of a park or trail.
Interviewer: What are Tory Schalkle’s plans for Parks & Trails?
Tory Schalkle: Sure! A friendly reminder that we are an entire Board, and ultimately the Council approves everything, so I’ll only speak for myself, but three things come to mind:
- A few new playgrounds – at least two are planned for this year
- More focus on trail upkeep and grooming
- Continue and potentially expand our roster of community events like maple tree tapping, concerts in the park, etc.
Interviewer: Those are great. Anything else?
Tory Schalkle: Beyond tactical plans, I think we’d benefit from solidifying more structural, strategic elements. Specifically:
- We need to ensure funding is more sustainable, even if that means experimenting with various monetization efforts (e.g., sponsorships)
- We as a Board need to better partner with the City Council to keep them abreast along the way, not just at the final point of recommendation
- We could make the Board efficient by better leveraging things like subcommittees or captainships and being more transparent on progress
More information about Tory Schalkle and the Wayzata Parks and Trails Board:
The Wayzata Parks and Trails Board focuses on the development and use of Wayzata’s parks and recreation facilities, leisure services, recreation programming, preservation of natural resources, and promotion of environmental awareness. It consists of seven community members selected by the Mayor and the City Council.
Tory Schalkle is actively involved in local and state philanthropy – helping start a non-profit to help economically disadvantaged youth, working with businesses and government to improve Minnesota’s talent retention, and advising the Super Bowl Host Committee on how local businesses can best capture the economic opportunity provided by the Super Bowl. Tory Schalkle is a resident of Wayzata and lifelong Minnesotan.
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SOURCE: Tory Schalkle
View source version on accesswire.com:
https://www.accesswire.com/638209/Tory-Schalkle-Named-Chair-of-the-Wayzata-Parks-and-Trails-Board