West Des Moines · Place Name Policy of Canada | CEMVC · Center for Early Modern Visual Culture

Settlement Name

West Des Moines

Province, Territory, or State

Iowa

Country

USA

Has Policy?

Yes

Policy

Parks, Greenways, Park Facilities, and
Trails Naming Policy
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
I. GENERAL
It is in the interest of the citizens of West Des Moines to establish a policy for naming of City parks, greenways, park facilities, and trails located within the West Des Moines parks and trails system. Naming shall primarily be according to geographic location, historical significance, landmarks, or neighborhood location. In certain instances, it may be deemed appropriate to name a site after an individual, business, or organization that has provided a significant contribution.
The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines and procedures for the naming of parks, greenways, park facilities, and trails. In most cases, consideration shall be given to requests for naming of new locations, unnamed areas, or those being renovated.
The Parks and Recreation Advisory Board (BOARD) has the right to make recommendations to the City Council (COUNCIL). The COUNCIL then has the exclusive right to approve naming of City parks and greenways, park facilities, and trails within the City of West Des Moines in accordance with this policy.
II. PROCEDURE
Consideration of a proposal for the naming or renaming of City park land or a park facility shall be submitted and reviewed as follows:
A. Public-Initiated Requests
A letter of request (and/or petition) must first be submitted to the Director of Parks and
Recreation. The letter of request (and/or petition) shall include the proposed name, site location, contact information for the person making the request, reasons for the request, and any supporting documentation. The letter of request (and/or petition) shall include a brief explanation or biography of the person(s) or event to be honored and a justification of why the site is being recommended for specific naming. Recommended names that do not meet the guidelines established by this policy will not be considered.
Upon receipt of the letter or request (and/or petition) the matter will be placed on a subsequent BOARD agenda in order for the BOARD to initially consider the request and either deny or refer the request to staff and the BOARD’s Facilities Committee for further review and recommendation.
B. Staff-Initiated Naming Requests
Naming of sites initiated by staff shall be placed on a BOARD agenda in order for the BOARD to initially consider the request and either deny or refer the request to the BOARD’s Facilities Committee for further review and recommendation.

C. Staff Verification and Review / Facilities Committee Review
Within thirty (30) days of BOARD referral, staff will research and verify all information submitted in the request in accordance with the naming considerations and criteria set forth in Section III below. Staff will also request a review by other City departments, if necessary. Within ninety (90) days of BOARD referral, the Facilities Committee will consider staff findings and the extent of public support for, and public opposition to, the proposed name, and will make a recommendation regarding the request. The Facilities Committee recommendation will be placed on a subsequent BOARD agenda.
D. Board Review / Council Review
Public notice will be given and a public hearing will be held on the naming proposal being recommended by the Facilities Committee at the scheduled BOARD meeting. Notice of said hearings will be provided according to State requirements. In the event of renaming existing City park or greenway land or an existing City park facility or trail, notice of the public hearing shall also be posted in a conspicuous location on or within the facility. The BOARD will hold the public hearing and then take action to either deny the proposal or approve a recommendation to the COUNCIL. The matter will then be placed on a subsequent COUNCIL agenda in order for COUNCIL to consider and take action on the BOARD’s recommendation.
E. Approval / Installing or Replacing Signage
If the naming request is approved, the cost of producing, installing, maintaining, and replacing City signs with the new name may be required to be paid for by the person or organization requesting the name change prior to such work being undertaken by the City. If required, funding shall be provided by donation to the City in an amount established by appropriate City staff to be necessary for maintaining said sign for at least 10 years. All signage is subject to staff approval.

III. NAMING OPTIONS / CONSIDERATIONS AND CRITERIA FOR NAMING
The naming of City parks, greenways, park facilities, or trails may be, but is not limited to, in honor of individuals (living or deceased), organizations, or businesses that have made direct or significant contributions of services, land, funds, or goods to the City which have considerably enhanced the quality of life of West Des Moines citizens and contributed towards the mission of the Parks and Recreation Department; neighborhoods, geographic or common usage identifications; and persons, places, or events of historical or cultural significance. A. General Criteria
When evaluating naming requests, consideration should be given to the following general criteria:
1. Overall benefit to the City of West Des Moines and/or Parks and Recreation Department
2. Positive reflection of the City and/or Department
3. Purpose and mission of the City and/or Department
4. Proposed name is well known to all citizens and/or acknowledged by other national, state, or local community organizations for lasting significance
5. Citizen input and support for name or name change
6. No duplication of names or repeated recognition of a specific person or group

The name shall not endorse any religion or religious belief, have any obscene connotation or demean any racial or ethnic group or be derogatory or offensive as measured by contemporary community standards. City staff, BOARD, and COUNCIL reserve the right to reject any proposal that does not meet this policy, or names that promote products, programs, or activities that are detrimental to public health, safety and well-being; violate the First Amendment, or laws of the land; promote any unethical business practice under law; or discriminate against any person or group. Naming recognition is subject to future change/reconsideration by the City in the event that the recognition becomes damaging to the City’s reputation, or contradictory to applicable law, as determined by the City.
B. Naming in Recognition of Donation
In the event of naming requests related to significant donations of funds, in-kind services with monetary value, or land, the donation shall generally be in an amount equal to fifty percent (50%) or more of the total development cost of the project. A written gift and naming agreement shall be entered into between the City and honored donor, or person or entity providing the donation, prior to or upon approval of the naming request. Such agreement shall state that, as determined by the City, naming recognition is subject to future change/ reconsideration by the City in the event that the recognition becomes damaging to the city’s reputation, contradictory to applicable law, or in the case of a business name, the business closes. The written agreement may also include an appropriate time limitation on the honorary donor naming, and may set minimum contribution amount guidelines for naming purposes.
The recognition of donors shall be as described in the written agreement but in all cases shall be consistent with the Parks and Recreation Department’s signage program and be as unobtrusive as possible, complementing the environment in which it is located.

IV. EXCEPTIONS
A. Exceptions to the procedure set forth in Section II of this policy may be made by COUNCIL or by recommendation to the COUNCIL by City staff and/or the BOARD, upon finding appropriate circumstances to consider or expedite the naming of a City park, greenway, park facility, or trail.
B. City parks, greenways, park facilities, or trails shall not be named in honor of any City employee, Mayor, or Council, Commission, or Board member until at least two years following the end of their term/employment with the City.
C. This policy of naming City parks, greenways, park facilities, or trails shall not preclude the appropriate acknowledgment of assistance, financial or otherwise, from organizations or individuals in the construction, operation, or maintenance of City parks, greenways, park facilities or trails, such as placing plaques or signs identifying the organization or individual who made a donation to the project or naming a minor component of a structure, for example, one room of a facility, or a non-fixture component of a facility (bench, tree, etc.).
D. In the case of renaming, preference will be given to renaming of City parks, greenways, park facilities, and trails that have not previously been named to honor a specific person or event.

Approved by Parks & Recreation Advisory Board – 10/19/17

Contact Info

ryan.penning@wdm.iowa.gov

Policy Score

78