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City of Madison Parks Division Policy on Donations via the Madison Parks Foundation
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WHEREAS, the Board of Park Commissioners has the statutory authority, under Wis. Stat. § 27.08(2)(a), to govern, manage, control, improve and care for all public parks within the City of Madison, and to secure the quiet, orderly and suitable use and enjoyment thereof by the people, and to adopt rules and regulations to promote those purposes; and
WHEREAS, the City of Madison Parks Division (“Madison Parks”) and the Madison Parks Foundation (the “Parties”) entered into an initial Cooperative Agreement in 2013 (Leg File #26651, RES-12-00506) and a successive Cooperative Agreement in 2023 (Leg File #78401, Res-23-00637), to formally declare and establish the Madison Parks Foundation (“Foundation”) as the City’s official non-profit fund-raising collaborator as it relates to the City’s park system; and,
WHEREAS, the City has been and anticipates it will continue to be the recipient of numerous bequests, gifts or other donations for park purposes, which funds may be better utilized by the Foundation; and,
WHEREAS, Madison Parks desires to encourage donations while at the same time ensuring equitable access to parks, managing aesthetic impacts, and creating strategies to mitigate on‐going maintenance costs that come with increased park amenities; and,
WHEREAS, staff have identified a need for a consistent policy that establishes guidelines, standards and procedures for the acceptance, installation, care, and recognition for these donations in accordance with the terms defined in the Cooperative Agreement; and,
WHEREAS, if this policy is approved, Madison Parks will accept only those donations given with the full understanding that they become the property of the City and are subject to the laws, policies, and procedures that govern Madison Parks; and,
WHEREAS, The Parks Long Range Planning Subcommittee affirmed the draft “Policy of the Madison Parks Division Regarding Donations Via the Madison Parks Foundation” on August 21, 2024 and recommend that the Board of Park Commissioners affirm the proposed policy.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the Board of Park Commissioners hereby affirms the attached “Policy of the Madison Parks Division Regarding Donations Via the Madison Parks Foundation”.