The Parks and Recreation Department has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in the past year on several projects around Athens, with much of the money coming from donations.
Kevin Schwartzhoff, director of Parks and Recreation, presented recent and future projects to Athens City Council's arts and recreation committee at the council's meeting Monday, May 9.
Total cost of all current Parks and Recreation projects is $316,605. Funding for the projects includes $74,805 from the city and $241,800 from donations.
This shows people's interest in Athens
said Schwartzhoff. It also shows the benefits people receive in parks and recreation.
One of the projects that Parks and Recreation is working on is Southside Playground on Ridgeland Drive, which has been replaced and updated. Included in those improvements are handicapped-accessible equipment, new mulching and pads at the bottom of all slides and entrances. Total cost of the project is $22,000, with $4,200 coming from the city budget and $17,800 from donations.
Another project nearly finished by Parks and Recreation is the improvement and building of Jaycee Fields in West State Street Park. Three ballparks are being renovated and will be completed by the end of May. They have been named after three famous ballparks -Fenway Park, Wrigley Field and Pac Bell Park.
The fields are half the size of the major league parks and will include famous landmarks known to the fields. For example, Fenway Park will include a backstop and dugouts much like the big league park. Also, it will have the famous Green Monster on the field and the homerun fence will have the same design as the original Fenway Park field. Also, each field will be geared toward a different age group.
We have never had a field for certain age groups before said Schwartzhoff. He said that Wrigley Field would be geared toward boys 14 years old and younger. Before, children had to play on high school-sized fields that were inappropriate for their size.
The Jaycee Fields have many programs already in place and this improvement helps to make them better said Councilwoman Carol Patterson, D-2nd Ward.
Nearly 90 percent of the money for the renovations was donated, Councilwoman Nancy Bain, D-3rd Ward, said.
There are many great volunteers in this community, she said, and this is just one example of all the hard work they put into the city of Athens.
The Athens Jaycees originally created the park in the 1960s. The Jaycees are no longer in existence, however, the city runs and takes care of its upkeep, said Schwartzhoff.
One project not included in the total project budget of the Parks and Recreation Department is the Sells Park Trails Project on Athens eastside, off of Avon Street. That project includes new trails and new signs.
They have done a good job identifying the trails
said Schwartzhoff. It makes it a lot safer.
Future projects include a soccer field complex, West State Street playground expansion, outdoor/indoor aquatics facilities and a Southside Park restroom facility. Although none of those projects have grant money and still require much planning, the outlook for the projects is positive, Schwartzhoff said.
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Meghan Nicholson
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Though the new dugouts are not completely finished, a baseball field on West State Street Park is lined for a game. Renovations to the West State Park Fields are just one of the many projects the Athens Parks and Recreation Department began working on thi
