Five members of Roanoke City Council voted unanimously Monday to revise the city's parks and recreation plan, but it will take 10 years of tough decisions and heavy spending to make that plan a reality.

As added to Vision 2001-2020, the city's comprehensive plan, the recommendations made by consultant Leon Younger call for Roanoke to invest $75 million over the next 10 years into its greenways, parks and recreation facilities. According to Younger, the city's last major capital investment in its parks came more than 40 years ago when it built Eureka Recreation Center in Northwest Roanoke.

Councilman Alfred Dowe, who lives in Northwest, said it's time for another project in the city quadrant, which was singled out by Younger for its general lack of facilities and park space.

"I would love for us to be able to address a nice recreation center in the Northwest area," Dowe said. "I'm not sure where in Northwest, but I'd certainly like to see us address that first."

The study includes seven "Big Moves" on which the city can focus to really help make things happen, Younger said. One of those moves suggests that Washington Park, located in Northwest near the Orange Avenue exit of Interstate 581, be developed into a state-of-the-art "signature park" to attract people from around Southwest Virginia.

"Clearly the need to bring up the standard and the amenities within Washington Park would be something that would clearly benefit the Northwest section of the city," Mayor Nelson Harris said. In addition, "there has been some talk of these multigenerational recreation centers hopefully done in concert or at least planning with Roanoke County. We've looked at the north side of the city as a potential location for one of those."

Councilman Sherman Lea said that as the council starts to approach its various recreation projects, he'll push to make sure that Northwest is included.

"The citizens of Northwest feel like they're neglected," Lea said. "We're working to resolve that, but perception is a lot, and we need to do better in regards to that part of our city."

But at the same time, he and fellow Councilman Brian Wishneff balked at the $75 million figure. Roanoke City Manager Darlene Burcham told the council the city already has plans to allocate $30 million over the next five years for recreation projects. The council voted earlier this year to spend a little more than $7 million on the parks and recreation department's operating budget in the 2007-08 fiscal year.

"We've got to get a little more conservative in what we're doing with our spending. We've got some challenges ahead," Lea said. "I agree we've got to have a vision, but let's make the vision realistic to start achieving and making some inroads into things."

One of the plan's more controversial recommendations is its call for an amphitheater. According to the study, city residents rank an amphitheater as the second-most important facility for the city. Greenways rank first.

The issue of where to build an amphitheater has divided the council. In June it voted 4-2 to issue a request for proposals to build and operate a 7,000-seat amphitheater at the former Victory Stadium site on Reserve Avenue.

Wishneff and Lea want to build a smaller version in Elmwood Park.

"We're so far below even an average city in terms of sports fields," Wishneff said. "I hope parents are paying attention. If they spend $12 million-plus on a 7,000-seat amphitheater, it's going to really push back youth sports and activities several more years."

So although the council voted unanimously to add the parks and recreation master plan to Vision 2001-2020, it's clear that its members still disagree on the best way to achieve its goals.

On the Net:

The entire plan can be viewed on the city's Web site, www.roanokeva.gov