Dow Constantine, who is running to be the next King County Executive, rolled out a plan this afternoon to keep open 39 parks, which were slated for closure to help bridge a $56 million budget gap. The proposal seems geared to attract suburban voters—who use the parks in unincorporated parts of the county—to a candidate whose base resides largely in Seattle.

“In a lot of these communities, the neighborhood park is in many ways the centerpiece, the gathering place, and the one opportunity for recreation—for kids to play a game of ball,” says Constantine. “Folks in unincorporated areas are paying taxes and they deserve to have parks open, and unless we have exhausted every reasonable channel to keep them open, we shouldn’t be closing them.”

Constantine thinks that by reducing maintenance services, most of the 39 parks can stay open through the end of 2010. Cities and nonprofits can take over the parks through annexations and partnership agreements, respectively. This November, cities will vote on annexations, and Constantine says that if all goes well, they will assimilate up to 18 of the parks. Roughly one-third are in the White Center area, such as Arbor Lake Park. Any remaining parks could be sustained by reallocating roughly one million dollars of the county parks levy, passed in 2007, for extended maintenance. But that would require a vote.

“I think most people would consider that to be a reasonable investment,” Constantine says. He acknowledges that while some would argue the expense is a misuse of limited resources in a recession, “The local park is one of the few significant civic assets, and when you eliminate that you start down a very dangerous path.”