ROCHESTER, Minn. - 

The Park Board is meeting virtually to provide updates on its master plan - and talk finances. The 80 million in park improvements would go towards a wide range of projects like updating tennis courts, locker rooms at Silver Lake Park's pool and adding other park amenities across the community. 

Paul Widman - the Parks and Rec Director says the city has not invested a lot in the Parks system and that the city has a long history of doing the bare minimum, not addressing long-term maintenance. Now that more people are using the parks system during the pandemic, the Park Board says it's time for more upgrades. 

"Our trail system is one of the key features in Rochester that people love, that trail system connects you to a network of neighborhood and community parks that have been loved to death in a lot of ways, they need help, they need improvements," Widman said. 

In November - taxpayers will vote on whether or not they want an increase in property taxes - to help make upgrades to area parks. Those potential property taes would raise 2 million dollars a year to put into the parks.