BLOOMINGTON -- In a year where Bloomington's budget is so tight employees have been laid off, John Kennedy can see why people would have a hard time understanding why the parks department is considering a six-year, $27 million plan to expand and improve the city's parks.

But the plan includes a range of community improvements, including a $5 million community center, extensions of the Constitution Trail, as well as the city's first dog park and cricket fields.

Demand for more park space and facilities continue to grow even in a tough economy, said Kennedy, director of the parks, recreation and cultural arts department.

"For a community of our size, we need more space," Kennedy said.

The city has about 673 acres of parkland. Illinois Department of Natural Resources formulas recommend a city should have 10 acres per 10,000 residents. For Bloomington that means it should have a total of 750 acres.

Kennedy said the $39,000 plan is needed if the city wants to use state money in building its parks. The last parks plan was completed in 1997 and cost $125,000. Kennedy said that plan helped the city receive $2.5 million in state funding.

In September, the Bloomington City Council will consider adopting a six-year, $27 million plan to expand and improve the city's parks. A copy of the proposed plan is available through the parks department's Web site, www.bpard.org, and is currently under public review.

Dan Dalziel of 3D Designs, which helped create the plan, said the recommendations in the plan include additions to Constitution Trail, a community center, a sports complex, cricket fields, upgrades to playground equipment at most of the city's 36 parks, renovation of O'Neil Park pool and a dog park.

Shelia Snyder of Bloomington is excited to see the need for a dog park addressed in the proposed plan. Snyder collected 1,200 signatures earlier this year in an effort to put pressure on the city to build a dog park.

"Most dogs require daily exercise that leash restrictions do not permit," Snyder said. "A Bloomington dog park would not only provide a safe place for owners to exercise their canine friends, but it would also provide a place for the community to meet and share a common interest."

For more than 10 years, Kennedy said the city has made attempts to find a site for a dog park because it has received large number of requests from citizens. Bloomington is now looking at building a dog park on 5 acres of land near Sunnyside Park. Kennedy does not have an estimate to develop the park but said costs could start at about $20,000.

The plan also includes a community center that Dalziel said could be built at Harvest Pointe Park. The facility would be designed to include classrooms or meeting rooms for community events, park's department programs and senior citizen activities. The center also would include fitness rooms with aerobic exercise equipment and possibly a walking track, according to Dalziel's report.

Decisions on how the plan will be funded and when it will be started are up to the City Council, Kennedy said.

Currently, most of the department's annual $2 million to $3 million in park development money has been redirected to help balance the city's $77 million general fund budget. About $250,000 remains in the budget for park development.

In 1998, the council increased the city's sales tax one-quarter of one cent to pay for increasing the number of parks. Kennedy said it will be up to the current council if they want to return the sales tax funding to the parks department in the future.

The department's current annual budget is about $13 million. Half of the department's funds come from city tax dollars while the other half comes from user fees, admissions and sponsorships.