
County Parks Win a Pair of Statewide Awards
Friday, April 12, 2019
Onondaga County Parks took home top honors at the 2019 New York Recreation & Park Society Awards Ceremony held this week in Lake Placid. The annual ceremony recognizes the achievements and efforts in the field of parks and recreation across New York State. The winners included:
Bill Lansley, Parks Commissioner - Outstanding Service Award for significant contributions to the advancement of the leisure field and active participation in community service.
In the time Commissioner Lansley has been with the Parks Department he has created multiple beneficial public private partnerships such as the one with Galaxy Communications and the Lights on the Lake Program, and overcome several difficult economic hardships, such as, the budget cuts at Carpenter's Brook Fish Hatchery, where he utilized his extensive background in management to find new ways to save that facility and help it grow and thrive. A cooperative partnership with SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry was just one of the progressive ideas he pushed forward in this particular effort. He has also maintained a strong leadership role in the Friends of Carpenter's Brook Fish Hatchery attending every meeting, assisting in the planning of the groups co-operative event with the Federation of Sportsmen, Honeywell Sportsmen's Days and volunteering at their programs, teaching young children, seniors and those with disabilities how to fish.
Lansley has also become a champion for a variety of environmental and outdoor recreation/education organizations and issues. He serves on the Onondaga County Fisheries Advisory Board, the Board of Directors for the Friends of the Rosamond Gifford Zoo, and the board of directors for the Onondaga County Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, for which he is currently serving as their president, and the NY State Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame. In addition to all of his environmental and conservation endeavors, he serves on the United Way Campaign Team for Onondaga County and has worked with Special Olympics New York, serving on the Games Organizing Committee (GOC) when the games were hosted in CNY.