Splash pad included | Lovell council supports Constitution Park development

Having received sufficient public support, the Lovell Town Council approved a resolution Tuesday night to seek a grant to fund recreation development at Constitution Park.

Several members of the public attended the regular December council meeting to weigh in on the merits of funding phase one of a multi-faceted redevelopment of the park in southeast Lovell.

At issue was whether to spend up to $300,000 in town funds to match a $300,000 Land and Water Conservation Fund grant the town would apply for from the Wyoming Dept. of State Parks and Cultural Resources.

Town Administrator Jed Nebel led the council and attending citizens through a PowerPoint presentation during which he spelled out a number of ideas for phase one, final details of which would be finalized during the design of the park, if the grant is approved.

The council already voted in November to approve a master plan for the project, allocating $9,750 for the plan to be done by Land Design Inc. of Billings, 50 percent of which could be reimbursed through the Land and Water Conservation Fund grant, if approved. Nebel based his presentation Tuesday on meetings with LDI and the preliminary master plan, which would be finalized after the public input.

Originally, the idea was to develop the park in three phases, but based on LDI’s recommendation, the current plan calls for two phases: a splash pad, playground equipment in phase one and a walking path, amphitheater and more in phase two.

In phase one, the current kiddie pool would be removed and replaced with a 2,000-square foot splash pad in the southwest corner of the park. Adjacent to the splash pad, under the concept, would be a 4,500-square foot playground and a new restroom facility. The current driveway between those facilities and the softball field would be closed off and filled in with grass, Nebel said, and a path would lead to the picnic pavilion to the north.

Nebel showed two options for phase one, with slightly different configurations for the facilities.

Under both options, the splash pad would be located close to trees for shade, and natural rock would double as seating and protection for the facility. There would be no age restrictions on the splash pad so parents could play with their kids, Nebel said. The facility would be ADA accessible, he added. 

It was pointed out that the town is spending a lot of money on the kiddie pool for testing and lifeguards, and Lovell Parks Director Gary Emmett said there would be some upcoming repairs needed on the pool, money for which he’d rather see spent on new equipment instead of a Band-Aid for old equipment.

Ticking off various ideas, Nebel said the splash pad could include slides, waterfalls, a fountain and water labs – buckets to be filled up and splashed. He also showed a possible wooden castle that could be part of the playground equipment. Play pods with a variety of equipment would be located throughout the park, not just in one location.

“That’s the new thing, kids moving throughout the park,” Mayor Kevin Jones said, noting that the play pods would also provide variety and creativity for the park.

Nebel said the natural rock would be outside the splash pad, not within it.

Ideas for the rest of the park and play pods include a bicycle pump track, a climbing boulder, walking path and pickle ball court, most of which would
come in phase two. The second phase would also involve an amphitheater in the northeast corner of the park and an
associated sledding hill. The skate park would be relocated.

“Our goal is to have something for all ages,” Jones said, and he noted that there could be an opportunity for a public-private partnership in which a business could sponsor half (a grant match) of a play pod.

“Something we talked about as a council is that it’s time to give something back to the community and give people something they can enjoy,” Jones continued. “Obviously, it comes down to money, but Jed has done an excellent job writing the grant. There’s a lot of work involved in the proposal. I appreciate
Jed and Val’s (town clerk/treasurer Valerie Beal) hard work.”

Nebel said there is evidence of great support for the project in a petition drive conducted by Rosalie Patina last summer. He said there are 112 signatures on the petition, 82 of which were identified as residents who live in the town limits. The petition included 60 to 70 comments in favor of the splash pad, he noted. Patina attended Tuesday’s meeting with others in support of the project.

Nebel also pointed out that Land and Water Conservation Fund money was used to develop the park, the picnic pavilion, the original playground equipment and the softball field, so the new project would be an enhancement of an existing park, which Emmett pointed out the state prefers.

“We’ve used Land and Water Conservation Fund money since 1967,” Nebel said.

Lovell Inc. Director Stormy Jameson said there is a lot of community support for the proposed walking path, and Nebel agreed, saying he had observed as much public support for a walking path as for a splash pad.

Keith Grant, attending the meeting to discuss another matter, suggested that the town look into a TEAL grant through WyDOT for the walking path.

Funding the project

With the design discussion concluded, the council turned to funding the project. Nebel presented a cost breakdown for phase one prepared by LDI, some of which could be eliminated such as using mulch for the playground instead of a rubbery “poured in place” surfacing. Cost estimates range from $549,000 to $682,000, and Nebel said $600,000 is “a fair number” for the project, which would mean a $300,000 match by the town.

Nebel said there are certain things the town crew could do for the project to provide an in-kind match, and Beal said about $100,000 could be used from the construction fund left over from the water and sewer project. The rest would have to come from general fund reserves, she said.

While there’s always the possibility that construction costs come in higher than estimates, Nebel said a professional company with a lot of experience with projects of this type (LDI) arrived at the construction estimates.

Nebel said total park development – both phases – could take a few years and the likelihood of construction starting next year is slim.

The council expressed interest in knowing for sure that the citizens of Lovell are behind the project, with councilman Tom Newman saying, “$300,000 is a lot of money. I want to make sure we’re not committing the citizens of Lovell to something we can’t afford.”

Mayor Jones noted that the town has done a great job over the years of saving money well above the typical threshold, but he agreed with Newman in saying, “We need to hear from people that this is where they want their money spent.”

With that, the council voted to approve a resolution to seek a LWCF grant of $300,000 for the
project and will go ahead if there is no groundswell of opposition by the
end of the week. The grant application is due on
December 30.

By David Peck