Rowan Little League’s Softball World Series victory is at least partially responsible for one of the latest long-term county projects.

Last week, county government began looking for companies to create a parks and recreation master plan and a feasibility study to create a sports complex. Rowan County has already begun looking for a company to oversee a parks and recreation master plan. County Manager Aaron Church said he will soon release a request for companies to oversee a sports complex economic feasibility study.

Church, who recommended the project to commissioners, said the Rowan Little League Softball Team sparked conversation about the state of the county’s parks. Another reason for the project, he said, is that the last parks and recreation master plan expired in 2010.

Reasons cited in his recommendation to commissioners for another master plan included grant funds paying for any future park projects, enhancing the quality of life through improved parks and boosting tax revenues by keeping travel sports teams in Rowan.

The two projects — studying the creation of a large sports complex and the master plan — are tied together, but will involve noticeably different community involvement.

Church said the master plan would involve a significant amount of public comments.

“We’ll be looking at the active and passive recreation opportunities that Rowan County citizens want,” he said.

The first phase of the master plan would only be gathering public comments — community meetings, surveys, individual interviews and telephone interviews.

Then, a company would inventory and compare Rowan County’s current parks to others, similarly sized communities in North Carolina.

A final master plan would be due on April 1, according to county documents.

Rowan County’s last master plan for parks was completed in January 1996. It didn’t set specific locations for parks. Instead, the plan recommended total numbers of parks and recreation facilities needed.

For example, the 1996 study said Rowan County needed 330 camping sites by 2010. At the time, Rowan had a total of 80 camping sites. The study said Rowan needed six public pools by 2010. At the time, Rowan only had one public pool.

Basketball, football and youth ballfields were three areas where Rowan exceeded the recommended 2010 number at the time of the study.

Rowan’s 1996 master plan estimated it would take a total of $2.24 million for all proposed projects in the plan.

Church said some parks and recreation plans may have expired or not been completed because of the 2008 economic recession.

The feasibility study for a sports complex would mostly look at price of construction. It would include a consolidated complex of sports fields.

One possibility is a sports complex at Dan Nicholas Park, he said. However, Rowan County government owns land in other places, he said. The study would look at accessibility as one factor. The terrain of land will also be a factor. Church said flat land is typically more attracting because it involves a smaller amount of land grading.

A close location to I-85 would increase ease of accessibility, Church said.

Contact reporter Josh Bergeron at 704-797-4246.