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An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, amending and supplementing the Allegheny County Code of Ordinances, Division 1, entitled "Administrative Code," through the creation of a new Article 705, entitled "Parks," in order to provide a mechanism for exploring and accomplishing the privatization of one or more of the County Parks.
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WHEREAS, Allegheny County currently operates nine County Parks, with a total Parks Department budget for 2008 of $8.55 million; and
WHEREAS, in other jurisdictions, governmental units have experienced significant success with creating public-private partnerships for operating all or a portion of one or more parks; and
WHEREAS, in Indianapolis, IN, all of the 13 golf courses within the government park system are operated privately, and over 25% of the parks budget in Louisville, KY is funded through revenues and fees ultimately derived from private sources; and
WHEREAS, the potential for possible public-private partnerships within the Allegheny County Parks exists through the parks' newly created 501(c) entity, no statutory structure exists for undertaking such partnerships; and
WHEREAS, the Council deems it advisable to create a formalized statutory structure for establishing public-private partnerships for the County Parks in order to reduce the taxpayers' burden of paying for the County Parks to the extent possible;
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby enacts as follows:
SECTION 1. Amendment of the Code
The Allegheny County Code of Ordinances, Division 1, entitled "Administrative Code," is hereby amended and supplemented through the creation of a new Article 705, entitled "Parks," and consisting of the following provisions:
Article 705
Parks
§5-705-01. Public-Private Partnerships.
A. No later than July 1, 2008, the County Manager shall create a policy for establishing public-private partnerships within Allegheny County Parks. Such policy shall include provisions for public-private partnerships for the operation of one or more County Parks in their entirety, as well as for the operation of individual sites or services within one or more County Parks. At a minimum, such policy shall include:
1. A standardized process for identifying potential public-private partners;
2. A standardized process for partners to submit proposals for public-private partnerships within the County Parks;
3. A process for establishing at least one trial public-private partnership encompassing the operation of an entire County Park to begin no later than January 1, 2010.
B. The policy created under the terms of this Section shall become effective upon approval by the Council and Chief Executive.
SECTION 2. Severability
If any provision of this Ordinance shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid, void or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Ordinance which shall be in full force and effect.