'Friends of Shanes Park' is proposed

ROCKFORD - A Rockford resident is interested in forming a volunteer park group to help maintain the look and operations of the park, village councilors heard on Tuesday during their regular council meeting.

Kay Brandt said she and her husband moved into town about a year and a half ago and spend their time at the park, but have noticed that some things "need help."

"I just figure we have to start somewhere," she said during the public comment section of the meeting. "I just wondered about trying to organize a friends of the park volunteer group. I would be willing to try to get that up and running."

She said she would want to create a map of the park and then section out the park so volunteers would be assigned a section to maintain. She thought duties could include picking up trash, weeding and gardening, painting picnic tables, or anything else the council would like addressed.

"Even if we have three people, it's a start," she said.

Councilors liked the idea of a friends of the park group, and asked Brandt to take charge of the initiative. Interested residents may contact Brandt at 419-305-0419.

Brandt also asked councilors if they could rehab the existing pickleball courts. If they do, she requested the courts be renovated per the sport's standard, which is that courts should run north and south.

The village has four permanent pickleball courts, located on the east side of Shanes Park at 506 W. Bridge St., village administrator Aaron Temple said; however, the courts are in disrepair. Temple said the village is looking at renovating the pickleball courts, explaining it is looking at funds from a previous grant.

Last year, the village received $18,000 in the state capital budget bill to add restrooms at Shanes Park, he said. Before the village heard back about the grant, it moved foward with approving Parkway High School senior Brody Reigle's Eagle Scout project, which is constructing a new shelter house that will provide shade, picnic tables and restrooms to those using the splash pad and the outdoor space nearby. The village fronted the money for the restroom facility, but the fundraising to pay for the rest of the structure is part of Reigle's work to complete his project.

"We were told we were not getting any money, so a Boy Scout came and (he's) putting up a pavilion with restrooms," Temple said. "About a month after he started putting that up, they (the state) came back and said we were getting money. Now we don't need that for the restrooms. We have to get the legislation changed."

Mayor Ron Searight was set to travel to Columbus today to speak to Rep. Angie King, R-Celina, about changing the legislation so the money can be applied to repairing the courts.

The total project would be $24,000 meaning the village would match $7,000.

Temple said it's hard to tell about how the meeting will go, but he is hopeful King can "make something happen."

Council president Marcas Heitkamp said he's "cautiously optimistic" about the meeting.

Council also:

• heard Franklin Street is closed to through traffic due to the reconstruction project.

• heard the village installed security cameras at Shanes Park to curb vandalism.

• learned the village purchased a dirt packing machine to fill potholes.

The next Rockford Village Council meeting is at 7:30 p.m. April 7 at the village hall.