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Embattled Parks Superintendent Calls It Quits
Ken Bounds is stepping down, but will Mayor Nickels heed citizen outrage in making his replacement?
Flyer for recent Parks Rally
Seattle Parks Superintendent Ken Bounds, whose administration turned a popular city department into a boxing ring of divisiveness and controversy under Mayor Greg Nickels, said December 5 he will step down at the end of February 2007.
Bounds, 56, said he wants to "decompress" and travel for the ensuing year with his wife, who is retiring as well. The reference undoubtedly referred to conflicts Bounds faced in implementing an "enterprise" plan to commercialize city parks — a process that put him into ongoing turmoil with citizen and neighbor groups.
The question remains whether Bounds, said to be congenial and well-intended privately, fell on a philosophical sword for Nickels, whose arrogance toward ctizens groups is becoming a well–established and hotly contested pattern. Prior to Nickels' administration Bounds' department oversaw popular expansion of public spaces and helped marshall approval for a $200 million Pro Parks levy.
But in recent years, mayor-approved and Bounds-fronted initiatives increasingly were met with protests, rallies and lawsuits over issues such as a football–field sized parking garage in Woodland Park's zoo, a concert series at Gas Works Park, sports construction at Magnuson Park, installing fake grass in Loyal Heights, cutting down trees in Occidental Park, constructing a skateboard complex in lower Woodland and others.
Bounds complicated the unpopularity of parks decisions with a high-handed arrogance dismissive of citizen complaints. He or department representatives also engaged in deception in characterizing public input into decision-making, although they tried to reshape miscues once proof of their misdeeds came to light in city memos and emails.
In November general-election balloting, citizens gave Bounds tantamount to a no-confidence vote in approving a city charter amendment giving the CIty Council oversight review of the superintendent's appointment every four years. The measure won by 80 percent.
A message from one activist on the Seattle Parks and Open Space Advocates e-mail list summed up attitudes: "Basically, the Parks Dept doesn't listen to the neighbors because they don't much care. Their priority under Ken Bounds is securing money, and field fees from adults are a favorite source."
At the Council's budget hearings in October, public testimony decried funding for the zoo garage and turning Hangar 27 at Magnuson Park from a multipurpose community facility into an indoor soccer field.
The pattern for a Parks initiative under Bounds was to announce it as a "done deal" when citizen input either had been rushed, ignored or not taken at all. In the case of the zoo garage, Bounds oversaw a public comment process meeting minimal legal requirements. The "switcheroo" of the garage location from a citizen-endorsed (albeit reluctantly) south end, buried location to an above-ground, four-story west side site was never specified in hearing announcements. The timing of the announcement to coincide with Labor Day 2004 and holding a hearing on Rosh Hashana also subverted public opinion.
This followed a May 11, 2004, memo from Bounds and finance chief Dwight Dively to Mayor Nickels: "We suggest doing high-level strategic thinking about how we stage the roll-out of decisions, anticipate community issues and concerns..."
Yet in public statements, Bounds insisted that years of citizen input had gone into the West side relocation.
In the case of Gas Works Park concerts, Bounds said publicly that his department did not have time to accommodate public input into the unexpected and incendiary decision to move a popular summer music series to the Lake Union park, creating noise, parking, pollution and other problems.
Yet city memos showed the plan was under consideration for months, and a December 14, 2005 memo from Parks PR coordinator Dewey Potter stated: "Early in the year we will hold one or more public meetings in Wallingford with the understanding the decision is made..."
The Gas Works Parks fiasco led to a successful lawsuit from Wallingford citizens to block the concert series. Although the Parks Department maintained through the suit that it would hold the concerts at Gas Works in 2007, it decided after losing in court to abandon the plan.
Bounds' retirement puts the Parks superintendent post under what is sure to be an intense magnifying glass, with citizen and City Council oversight guaranteed. The background and philosophy of whomever Nickels appoints will be a clear indicator of whether the commercialization policies of recent decisions will continue or give way to a return of public trust to the Parks Department.
Following is an outline of Bounds policies involving just two decisions. Also please see links below to news articles on Bounds' retirement, as well as full-text reprint of Bounds' retirement memo to city employees and a testimonial on his behalf along with the city news release.
--Paul Andrews, for Save Our Zoo
BREACH OF TRUST
Parallels between the Gas Works Park "steamroll" and the Woodland Park Zoo "switcheroo"
Subversion of Public Input
GWP: August to December 22, 2005: Concert planning goes on with no public notification whatsoever. Memos later show the strategy was simply to steamroll the citizenry.
Zoo: May to September 1, 2004: Plans to change Zoo garage location from south to west side are made with no public notification whatsoever. This later becomes known as the "switcheroo."
"Smoking Gun" Memos
GWP: On Dec. 14, 2005, Parks PR representative Dewey Potter writes to mayor's office, "Early in the year we will hold one or more public meetings in Wallingford with the understanding the decision is made..."
Zoo: On May 11, 2004, Parks supt. Ken Bounds and finance chief Dwight Dively write to the mayor: "We suggest doing high-level strategic thinking about how we stage the roll-out of decisions, anticipate community issues and concerns..."
Fake Process
GWP: Dec. 22, 2005: Wallingford community was finally informed of concert series move.
Zoo: Zoo neighbors were *never* notified explicitly that the garage location was being switched. But on Sept. 1, 2004, a flyer announcing an open house on "a West Side garage" (without disclosing it was replacing the "preferred option" south-side garage) was circulated. On Sept. 17, four days after the "open house" and two days after a "public hearing" before the City Council parks committee, public comment was terminated, with few residents even aware that a change had been made.
The "Done Deal" Hustle
GWP: Feb. 23, 2006: After Wallingford residents learn of the concert series and raise an outcry, Bounds says, "there was not a normal public process, but a decision had to be made."
Zoo: June 8, 2005: When Zoo neighbors rally to oppose a West Side garage, Bounds declares, "It's a done deal and we're moving forward."
Violation of SEPA
GWP: Feb. 22, 2006: Friends of Gas Works Park files suit against the concert series, alleging violation of the State Environmental Policy Act. Bounds says the concert series has never required an environmental-impact statement.
Zoo: Officials refuse to say whether they will file a supplemental EIS on the garage. They hint, however, that none may be required and only a declaration of non-significance may be filed.
RESULT
GWP: Feb. 28, 2006: After losing court decision, concert series is canceled for 2007.
Zoo: Will the parallelism hold?
Seattle Post-Intelligencer story.
Seattle Times story.
Memo from Bounds
Dear Parks and Recreation Employees,
Last week I formally notified Mayor Nickels of my intent to retire from City service February 28th, 2007. My wife Linda is also retiring from her position with the City of Burien. We intend to take up to a year off traveling and, at least for me, 'decompressing.' We've both been working for 33 years and feel like it's time to take a break! However, I do intend to resurface in the working world in 2008. I truly have not given any thought as to what I might do next. I'll save that thinkin' for 2007. There's still much to do between now and then.
I have worked for the City 31 years - 17 of them for Parks and Recreation. My most memorable and rewarding times clearly have been working with all of you. I feel honored to have worked among so many of the City's high performing, committed, and passionate 'about what you do' public servants. I smile every time I see our staff at their best in the field, whether it's pulling liners, organizing a volunteer party, making a presentation at a community meeting, repairing a broken sidewalk, installing an innovative support system to hold up the seawall at Luna Park, preparing food for the otters, answering the phones with great customer service, working the desk at our community centers, lifeguarding a pool or swimming beach, pruning trees, installing play equipment, planting and maintaining shrub beds, and I could go on and on. I also smile when I see the public using our parks and facilities, and use them they do!!
I feel very proud about what we've been able to accomplish together, and truly believe that the department is strong, and that it is strong because of you. You exemplify the values that will keep the organization strong, and we have in place exceptional leadership at all levels of the Department to carry on the great work we've begun. I am especially proud of the way you have embraced partnerships with volunteers, with our advisory councils and “Friends” groups, with the Park Foundation, SEAS and ARC, and with other community groups including the many ethnic communities we strive to serve.
We've successfully implemented two community center levies, an open space levy, a zoo bond issue, many millions of dollars in other CIP projects and of course the very successful 2000 Parks For All (Pro Parks) Levy. We've incorporated an environmental ethic in everything we do, we've initiated and provided City leadership in an ambitious Race and Social Justice Initiative, we transferred the Zoo to non-profit management (with some heartache, but it was the right thing to do), we've implemented several hundred neighborhood-initiated projects through the Neighborhood Matching Fund, and we've expanded our day camps and before and after school programs to be the largest out of school provider in the City - and again, I could go on and on.
So, while I will miss all of you and the many rewards of working in the greatest park system in the country, I am confident that the good works will continue and I'm looking forward to some serious time off.
I'll keep you posted on what the Mayor decides about selecting a new Superintendent, which he will announce soon.
I will be here until February 28th and look forward to seeing as many of you as possible. Have a happy and safe holiday season. I will forever be blessed for having had the opportunity to work with all of you.
Sincerely,
Ken
From: Karen Daubert
[mailto:karen@seattleparksfoundation.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2006 2:46 PM
Parks Employees:
Ken Bounds has been a founder, a supporter, and a partner of the Seattle Parks Foundation and we will miss his leadership as Parks Superintendent deeply.
Ken Bounds is considered one of the most respected parks leaders in our country. As a leader in the National City Parks Alliance and the National Recreation and Parks Association (NRPA), Ken is known as a pro-active, conscientious, and forward-thinking leader and advocate. He was recognized as such just last month at the NRPA’s national conference held in Seattle and attended by 10,000 parks and recreation employees and supporters.
This recognition grew from the innovative and diverse projects he was able to initiate and complete during his years as the Parks Superintendent and as ex-officio board member of the Seattle Parks Foundation. Ken Bounds was a key partner in many of our projects which ranged from the completion of eighteen neighborhood park projects such as Homer Harris Park in the Central District and Lake People Park in Southeast Seattle, to Lake Union Park. Together we have worked to enhance and improve Seattle’s parks and green spaces.
In our five year history we have observed that Seattleites are passionate about parks. This results in competing pressures for the use of already heavily used and beloved parks. Ken has demonstrated outstanding leadership in making sometimes difficult decisions.
Ken Bounds’ passion for parks and their accessibility to all who live in Seattle will leave a legacy of public benefits for which we and future generations will thank him.
Karen Daubert, Executive Director
Seattle Parks Foundation
City of Seattle NEWS RELEASE
Gregory J. Nickels, Mayor
For immediate release December 5, 2006
Contact:Marianne Bichsel, 684-8878 or 375-6420 (cell) marianne.bichsel@seattle.gov
Seattle Parks Superintendent to Retire in February 2007
Mayor praises Ken Bounds for his dedication & 33 years of public service
SEATTLE - Mayor Greg Nickels announced today that Ken Bounds, Seattle Parks and Recreation superintendent since 1996, will retire at the end of February 2007 after 33 years of public service, 31 of them with the city of Seattle.
Ken has had a remarkable career and will leave a big hole to fill, Nickels said. I have met very few people with Kens dedication to public service and the skills to get things done over so long a period of time. In particular, the $200 million Pro Parks Levy, which leaves a massive legacy of new parks and open spaces for future generations, would never have happened without Kens leadership. On behalf of a grateful city, I thank him.
Bounds leadership has led to the passage and/or implementation of four voter-approved funding measures, plus tens of millions of dollars in other capital projects:
The 1989 $43 million Open Space Bond Issue, which leveraged $57 million more;
The 1991 $50 million Community Centers Levy;
The 1985 $31 million Zoo Bond Issue, which leveraged an additional $24 million;
The 1999 $36 million Community Centers Levy; and
The 2000 $200 million Pro Parks Levy, which to date has leveraged $7 million.
Bounds has led Parks and Recreation into partnerships that bring great financial and community benefits to the public, including those with Seattle public schools, universities, utilities, businesses, environmental organizations, and community organizations, and deliver the best possible park and recreation services to the people of Seattle.
It has been an incredible honor to serve as Parks Superintendent for the past ten-plus years, Bounds said. I have been blessed to work with a passionate, involved citizenry and a committed, enthusiastic, professional staff who daily make Seattles park system one of the nations best.
Mayor Nickels will announce a search for a new Parks Superintendent soon.
Bounds grew up in Ft. Worth, Texas. He began his public service with the city of Cleveland, Ohio, as an urban planner, after graduating from Baylor University in 1972 with a bachelors degree in economics and political science, and two years of work toward a masters degree in urban planning at the University of Iowa.
He began work in Seattle in 1976 at the Office of Policy and Planning, the citys central planning office at the time. He moved to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 1981, where then-Mayor Charles Royer appointed him budget director in 1989. At OMB Bounds managed two budget cycles and oversaw the creation of the department of neighborhoods and the neighborhood matching fund.
Bounds moved to Parks and Recreation in 1990 as deputy superintendent, and was appointed superintendent in 1996. Nickels reappointed him in 2002. Bounds broad civic, planning, and budget experience gave him a comprehensive understanding and keen vision for managing a large, complex urban park system that is many things to many people.
Surrounding himself with a host of dedicated professionals in recreation, environmental management, finance, project development, and customer service, Bounds has effectively managed a growing system of 26 community centers, 10 swimming pools, 6,200 acres of park land comprising 400-plus parks (11 percent of the citys total land area), four environmental learning centers, two boating centers, an indoor tennis center, and much more.
He oversaw an annual budget of $117 million in 2006, and a staff of 1,000 that swells to 1,500 in the summer.
Among his civic leadership roles are memberships on the boards of directors of the City Park Alliance, the Mountains to Sound Greenway, and ex-officio for the Seattle Art Museum, the Seattle Aquarium Society, and the Woodland Park Zoo Society. Bounds also serves on the leadership committee for the Green Seattle Partnership. Bounds won the National Recreation and Parks Association Rose Award for management in 2001.
Bounds, 56, said he wants to "decompress" and travel for the ensuing year with his wife, who is retiring as well. The reference undoubtedly referred to conflicts Bounds faced in implementing an "enterprise" plan to commercialize city parks — a process that put him into ongoing turmoil with citizen and neighbor groups.
The question remains whether Bounds, said to be congenial and well-intended privately, fell on a philosophical sword for Nickels, whose arrogance toward ctizens groups is becoming a well–established and hotly contested pattern. Prior to Nickels' administration Bounds' department oversaw popular expansion of public spaces and helped marshall approval for a $200 million Pro Parks levy.
But in recent years, mayor-approved and Bounds-fronted initiatives increasingly were met with protests, rallies and lawsuits over issues such as a football–field sized parking garage in Woodland Park's zoo, a concert series at Gas Works Park, sports construction at Magnuson Park, installing fake grass in Loyal Heights, cutting down trees in Occidental Park, constructing a skateboard complex in lower Woodland and others.
Bounds complicated the unpopularity of parks decisions with a high-handed arrogance dismissive of citizen complaints. He or department representatives also engaged in deception in characterizing public input into decision-making, although they tried to reshape miscues once proof of their misdeeds came to light in city memos and emails.
In November general-election balloting, citizens gave Bounds tantamount to a no-confidence vote in approving a city charter amendment giving the CIty Council oversight review of the superintendent's appointment every four years. The measure won by 80 percent.
A message from one activist on the Seattle Parks and Open Space Advocates e-mail list summed up attitudes: "Basically, the Parks Dept doesn't listen to the neighbors because they don't much care. Their priority under Ken Bounds is securing money, and field fees from adults are a favorite source."
At the Council's budget hearings in October, public testimony decried funding for the zoo garage and turning Hangar 27 at Magnuson Park from a multipurpose community facility into an indoor soccer field.
The pattern for a Parks initiative under Bounds was to announce it as a "done deal" when citizen input either had been rushed, ignored or not taken at all. In the case of the zoo garage, Bounds oversaw a public comment process meeting minimal legal requirements. The "switcheroo" of the garage location from a citizen-endorsed (albeit reluctantly) south end, buried location to an above-ground, four-story west side site was never specified in hearing announcements. The timing of the announcement to coincide with Labor Day 2004 and holding a hearing on Rosh Hashana also subverted public opinion.
This followed a May 11, 2004, memo from Bounds and finance chief Dwight Dively to Mayor Nickels: "We suggest doing high-level strategic thinking about how we stage the roll-out of decisions, anticipate community issues and concerns..."
Yet in public statements, Bounds insisted that years of citizen input had gone into the West side relocation.
In the case of Gas Works Park concerts, Bounds said publicly that his department did not have time to accommodate public input into the unexpected and incendiary decision to move a popular summer music series to the Lake Union park, creating noise, parking, pollution and other problems.
Yet city memos showed the plan was under consideration for months, and a December 14, 2005 memo from Parks PR coordinator Dewey Potter stated: "Early in the year we will hold one or more public meetings in Wallingford with the understanding the decision is made..."
The Gas Works Parks fiasco led to a successful lawsuit from Wallingford citizens to block the concert series. Although the Parks Department maintained through the suit that it would hold the concerts at Gas Works in 2007, it decided after losing in court to abandon the plan.
Bounds' retirement puts the Parks superintendent post under what is sure to be an intense magnifying glass, with citizen and City Council oversight guaranteed. The background and philosophy of whomever Nickels appoints will be a clear indicator of whether the commercialization policies of recent decisions will continue or give way to a return of public trust to the Parks Department.
Following is an outline of Bounds policies involving just two decisions. Also please see links below to news articles on Bounds' retirement, as well as full-text reprint of Bounds' retirement memo to city employees and a testimonial on his behalf along with the city news release.
--Paul Andrews, for Save Our Zoo
BREACH OF TRUST
Parallels between the Gas Works Park "steamroll" and the Woodland Park Zoo "switcheroo"
Subversion of Public Input
GWP: August to December 22, 2005: Concert planning goes on with no public notification whatsoever. Memos later show the strategy was simply to steamroll the citizenry.
Zoo: May to September 1, 2004: Plans to change Zoo garage location from south to west side are made with no public notification whatsoever. This later becomes known as the "switcheroo."
"Smoking Gun" Memos
GWP: On Dec. 14, 2005, Parks PR representative Dewey Potter writes to mayor's office, "Early in the year we will hold one or more public meetings in Wallingford with the understanding the decision is made..."
Zoo: On May 11, 2004, Parks supt. Ken Bounds and finance chief Dwight Dively write to the mayor: "We suggest doing high-level strategic thinking about how we stage the roll-out of decisions, anticipate community issues and concerns..."
Fake Process
GWP: Dec. 22, 2005: Wallingford community was finally informed of concert series move.
Zoo: Zoo neighbors were *never* notified explicitly that the garage location was being switched. But on Sept. 1, 2004, a flyer announcing an open house on "a West Side garage" (without disclosing it was replacing the "preferred option" south-side garage) was circulated. On Sept. 17, four days after the "open house" and two days after a "public hearing" before the City Council parks committee, public comment was terminated, with few residents even aware that a change had been made.
The "Done Deal" Hustle
GWP: Feb. 23, 2006: After Wallingford residents learn of the concert series and raise an outcry, Bounds says, "there was not a normal public process, but a decision had to be made."
Zoo: June 8, 2005: When Zoo neighbors rally to oppose a West Side garage, Bounds declares, "It's a done deal and we're moving forward."
Violation of SEPA
GWP: Feb. 22, 2006: Friends of Gas Works Park files suit against the concert series, alleging violation of the State Environmental Policy Act. Bounds says the concert series has never required an environmental-impact statement.
Zoo: Officials refuse to say whether they will file a supplemental EIS on the garage. They hint, however, that none may be required and only a declaration of non-significance may be filed.
RESULT
GWP: Feb. 28, 2006: After losing court decision, concert series is canceled for 2007.
Zoo: Will the parallelism hold?
Seattle Post-Intelligencer story.
Seattle Times story.
Memo from Bounds
Dear Parks and Recreation Employees,
Last week I formally notified Mayor Nickels of my intent to retire from City service February 28th, 2007. My wife Linda is also retiring from her position with the City of Burien. We intend to take up to a year off traveling and, at least for me, 'decompressing.' We've both been working for 33 years and feel like it's time to take a break! However, I do intend to resurface in the working world in 2008. I truly have not given any thought as to what I might do next. I'll save that thinkin' for 2007. There's still much to do between now and then.
I have worked for the City 31 years - 17 of them for Parks and Recreation. My most memorable and rewarding times clearly have been working with all of you. I feel honored to have worked among so many of the City's high performing, committed, and passionate 'about what you do' public servants. I smile every time I see our staff at their best in the field, whether it's pulling liners, organizing a volunteer party, making a presentation at a community meeting, repairing a broken sidewalk, installing an innovative support system to hold up the seawall at Luna Park, preparing food for the otters, answering the phones with great customer service, working the desk at our community centers, lifeguarding a pool or swimming beach, pruning trees, installing play equipment, planting and maintaining shrub beds, and I could go on and on. I also smile when I see the public using our parks and facilities, and use them they do!!
I feel very proud about what we've been able to accomplish together, and truly believe that the department is strong, and that it is strong because of you. You exemplify the values that will keep the organization strong, and we have in place exceptional leadership at all levels of the Department to carry on the great work we've begun. I am especially proud of the way you have embraced partnerships with volunteers, with our advisory councils and “Friends” groups, with the Park Foundation, SEAS and ARC, and with other community groups including the many ethnic communities we strive to serve.
We've successfully implemented two community center levies, an open space levy, a zoo bond issue, many millions of dollars in other CIP projects and of course the very successful 2000 Parks For All (Pro Parks) Levy. We've incorporated an environmental ethic in everything we do, we've initiated and provided City leadership in an ambitious Race and Social Justice Initiative, we transferred the Zoo to non-profit management (with some heartache, but it was the right thing to do), we've implemented several hundred neighborhood-initiated projects through the Neighborhood Matching Fund, and we've expanded our day camps and before and after school programs to be the largest out of school provider in the City - and again, I could go on and on.
So, while I will miss all of you and the many rewards of working in the greatest park system in the country, I am confident that the good works will continue and I'm looking forward to some serious time off.
I'll keep you posted on what the Mayor decides about selecting a new Superintendent, which he will announce soon.
I will be here until February 28th and look forward to seeing as many of you as possible. Have a happy and safe holiday season. I will forever be blessed for having had the opportunity to work with all of you.
Sincerely,
Ken
From: Karen Daubert
[mailto:karen@seattleparksfoundation.org]
Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2006 2:46 PM
Parks Employees:
Ken Bounds has been a founder, a supporter, and a partner of the Seattle Parks Foundation and we will miss his leadership as Parks Superintendent deeply.
Ken Bounds is considered one of the most respected parks leaders in our country. As a leader in the National City Parks Alliance and the National Recreation and Parks Association (NRPA), Ken is known as a pro-active, conscientious, and forward-thinking leader and advocate. He was recognized as such just last month at the NRPA’s national conference held in Seattle and attended by 10,000 parks and recreation employees and supporters.
This recognition grew from the innovative and diverse projects he was able to initiate and complete during his years as the Parks Superintendent and as ex-officio board member of the Seattle Parks Foundation. Ken Bounds was a key partner in many of our projects which ranged from the completion of eighteen neighborhood park projects such as Homer Harris Park in the Central District and Lake People Park in Southeast Seattle, to Lake Union Park. Together we have worked to enhance and improve Seattle’s parks and green spaces.
In our five year history we have observed that Seattleites are passionate about parks. This results in competing pressures for the use of already heavily used and beloved parks. Ken has demonstrated outstanding leadership in making sometimes difficult decisions.
Ken Bounds’ passion for parks and their accessibility to all who live in Seattle will leave a legacy of public benefits for which we and future generations will thank him.
Karen Daubert, Executive Director
Seattle Parks Foundation
City of Seattle NEWS RELEASE
Gregory J. Nickels, Mayor
For immediate release December 5, 2006
Contact:Marianne Bichsel, 684-8878 or 375-6420 (cell) marianne.bichsel@seattle.gov
Seattle Parks Superintendent to Retire in February 2007
Mayor praises Ken Bounds for his dedication & 33 years of public service
SEATTLE - Mayor Greg Nickels announced today that Ken Bounds, Seattle Parks and Recreation superintendent since 1996, will retire at the end of February 2007 after 33 years of public service, 31 of them with the city of Seattle.
Ken has had a remarkable career and will leave a big hole to fill, Nickels said. I have met very few people with Kens dedication to public service and the skills to get things done over so long a period of time. In particular, the $200 million Pro Parks Levy, which leaves a massive legacy of new parks and open spaces for future generations, would never have happened without Kens leadership. On behalf of a grateful city, I thank him.
Bounds leadership has led to the passage and/or implementation of four voter-approved funding measures, plus tens of millions of dollars in other capital projects:
The 1989 $43 million Open Space Bond Issue, which leveraged $57 million more;
The 1991 $50 million Community Centers Levy;
The 1985 $31 million Zoo Bond Issue, which leveraged an additional $24 million;
The 1999 $36 million Community Centers Levy; and
The 2000 $200 million Pro Parks Levy, which to date has leveraged $7 million.
Bounds has led Parks and Recreation into partnerships that bring great financial and community benefits to the public, including those with Seattle public schools, universities, utilities, businesses, environmental organizations, and community organizations, and deliver the best possible park and recreation services to the people of Seattle.
It has been an incredible honor to serve as Parks Superintendent for the past ten-plus years, Bounds said. I have been blessed to work with a passionate, involved citizenry and a committed, enthusiastic, professional staff who daily make Seattles park system one of the nations best.
Mayor Nickels will announce a search for a new Parks Superintendent soon.
Bounds grew up in Ft. Worth, Texas. He began his public service with the city of Cleveland, Ohio, as an urban planner, after graduating from Baylor University in 1972 with a bachelors degree in economics and political science, and two years of work toward a masters degree in urban planning at the University of Iowa.
He began work in Seattle in 1976 at the Office of Policy and Planning, the citys central planning office at the time. He moved to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 1981, where then-Mayor Charles Royer appointed him budget director in 1989. At OMB Bounds managed two budget cycles and oversaw the creation of the department of neighborhoods and the neighborhood matching fund.
Bounds moved to Parks and Recreation in 1990 as deputy superintendent, and was appointed superintendent in 1996. Nickels reappointed him in 2002. Bounds broad civic, planning, and budget experience gave him a comprehensive understanding and keen vision for managing a large, complex urban park system that is many things to many people.
Surrounding himself with a host of dedicated professionals in recreation, environmental management, finance, project development, and customer service, Bounds has effectively managed a growing system of 26 community centers, 10 swimming pools, 6,200 acres of park land comprising 400-plus parks (11 percent of the citys total land area), four environmental learning centers, two boating centers, an indoor tennis center, and much more.
He oversaw an annual budget of $117 million in 2006, and a staff of 1,000 that swells to 1,500 in the summer.
Among his civic leadership roles are memberships on the boards of directors of the City Park Alliance, the Mountains to Sound Greenway, and ex-officio for the Seattle Art Museum, the Seattle Aquarium Society, and the Woodland Park Zoo Society. Bounds also serves on the leadership committee for the Green Seattle Partnership. Bounds won the National Recreation and Parks Association Rose Award for management in 2001.
