by TaLeiza Calloway
news@thenewsleaders.com
The St. Joseph Park Board is seeking volunteer partners to assist with improvements to Cloverdale Park.
Park Board Chair John Anderson said the board is looking for volunteers to help in reducing the cost of the project. Board members earlier this year budgeted $25,000 for improvements to the neighborhood park. Anderson would like to see if the cost could get as low as $18,000 with community partnerships.
Improvements include the addition of a gazebo in the middle of the park, plantings and a weaving walkway around the park. If the cost is reduced, board members hope to add passive play equipment, Anderson said.
“It will be a contemplative park,” Anderson said when upgrades are complete. “It will be less active recreation and a little bit more of an area for people to sit and ponder life.”
Park improvements are slated for completion next year with some work starting as early as Earth Day, Anderson said. A possible Earth Day project would be assisting in tree planting at the park along with the regular clean-up projects that occur annually.
Improvements to Cloverdale Park are part of the city’s master park plan. Created in 2008, the park plan proposed upgrades that include the addition of a gazebo, labyrinth, a walking trail, granite monuments, and landscaping and other site amenities, according to city documents. The estimated cost of the proposed improvements is about $230,000, according to planning documents.
“It’s in the master park plan,” Anderson said of the improvements. “It’s estimated at a quarter million dollars for all the (proposed) improvements. We’re trying to do it at a tenth of the cost.”
Those interested in collaborating with the park board on the Cloverdale project can email Anderson at: johnand1951@charter.net.
