Anderson discusses park plans
ANDERSON – The Town of Anderson held a public hearing Thursday, June 30, to discuss the construction of a public park.
The Anderson Town Park is planned to be located on 4.008 acres just past Johnson Avenue, property that was gifted to the Town of Anderson approximately 20 years ago. Initial plans include having the park open until dark and will include a nature trail spanning .3 miles, signage for educational and historical purposes, bird watching site, exercise stations, a butterfly garden, native plants etc.
Anderson Mayor Karen McDuffie spoke about the plans, “This is all preliminary, we are still in the planning stage, so we can apply to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Grant. Nothing is concrete as of yet and we’d love to hear more from the community.”
Alderman Daryl Alfred stated his preference of having a lake in the park. During the hearing, Mary Ann Water asked if there are plans for a bathroom. McDuffie said there aren’t any current plans for a bathroom or electricity. Gloria Hitchcock also raised concerns about security issues, water and maintenance plans. The town council said they would look further into these aspects but as of right now they don’t have any solid plans.
The grant project total for the Anderson Town Park, if approved by Texas Parks and Wildlife, is $355,000 with a 50% required match contribution of $150,000 and a grant request of $150,000. The Town of Anderson will provide an overmatch of $55,000 for the project. The estimated costs done by appraisal opinion include professional services which will total at $20,500. This entails $15,500 for engineering and design, plus an additional $5,000 for overmatch provided application preparation.
McDuffie stated TPWD is allowing the city to use the property for their half of the match for the grant. A broker’s opinion letter valuing the land at $200,000 accompanies the application. The application preparation for the grant will be $5,000 and will be paid by the town. The Grant must be submitted by Aug. 1, and the public will have a chance to view the grant for 14 days before July 18. Council reiterated nothing is set in stone and said preliminary plans are just a starting point.
“We would really love more of the public’s input about the park, what features they want to see, what ideas they have, if they even want the park or not,” explained McDuffie. “We are open to all suggestions.”
The community is asked to participate in a public survey about the park, https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScBIVVBcCHjrp-KAdAu_rMDVW0zYtAg- 0fxeRMoQ_Es9hAdBxPw/viewform?usp=sf_link.