CITY NOTES … Busy summer seen for city Parks and Recreation Board
By Dr. Ken Sheckler, Vice President, Parks & Rec Board
Summer is just around the corner and the Charles City Park and Recreation board is busy planning upcoming projects and events. Our board consists of seven volunteer members appointed by the mayor and the City Council. The board is responsible for overseeing and setting the policy for all the city-owned parks.
Thank you to the current board members, President Bob Kloberdanz, Sarah Barrett, Chris Eldridge, Diane Meyer, Dennis Petersen and James Smith, for their commitment to the board. As the longest serving board member, appointed January 2002, I am privileged to see so many projects to completion.
On Saturday, June 17, at Wildwood Golf Course, a celebration commencing the second 100 years of golf (1917-2017) for the course is planned. The celebration, consisting of a golf tournament, meal and special events, will highlight the renovated course layout which provides a less congested, safer and more challenging game. Watch for more information in the coming weeks. Everyone is welcome to attend.
In addition to the course improvements, significant renovation and improvements are ongoing to the Wildwood Clubhouse. Renovations include three new mini-split air conditioner/heaters installed in the social hall and pro-shop areas providing improved comfort for patrons; a new ADA compliant uni-sex restroom; and a handicapped access ramp installed providing better access to the social hall in the next few weeks.
These improvements make Wildwood Clubhouse an excellent venue for graduation and wedding receptions, class reunions and family events.
The hall currently has 13 events scheduled for the summer. Information on reservations can be obtained by contacting the clubhouse at 641-2576322.
Sportsmen’s Park continues to undergo some additions and improvements. An 18-hole disc golf course and two pickle ball courts were added to the park in 2016. A new basketball court with regulation backboards will be installed soon.
Thank you to the Charles City Rotary Club members for providing the assembly and the installation of the new backboard assemblies and painting the court lines.
By late summer, the lighting system serving this area of the park will be replaced. In addition the north picnic shelter/restroom building will undergo some renovation. The 40-year-old flat-roofed areas of the facility will be replaced by a new pitched roof. The restroom partitions will be replaced and repairs made to the brick columns.
The Waverly Hill Dog park is a great new amenity for dog owners both local and visiting.
Preparations for the second phase of the dog park (the large dog area) continues. Hillside vegetation in this area continues to be removed by volunteers consisting of Trinity United Methodist Church members and others.
Funding for fencing around the additional area is secured and installation of the fencing is scheduled for this month.
Girl Scout Troop 20535 has been very involved in the development of the dog park and will also be assisting by painting a mural on the restroom building and painting the picnic shelter. This is another great example of service groups contributing to our community. Thank you to all involved.
The 27th season of the Lion’s Field outdoor pool commences with the opening on Memorial Day, Monday, May 29, at 1 p.m. for the day only. The pool will be closed Tuesday, May 30, through Thursday, June 1,and will re-open for the season at 3:30 p.m. Friday, June 2. This corresponds with the Charles City School summer dismissal.
Two Red Cross swimming lesson sessions are scheduled at the pool this summer. The first session is June 12-June 28, and the second session is July 5-July 21. The cost per session is $25 per child with a $60 maximum cost per family for each session.
Discussions for evening swim lessons and adult water safety/swim class continue. Details are forthcoming.
Once again, “water-walking” is scheduled for Monday, Wednesday and Friday from noon, (or the end of Red Cross lessons) to 1 p.m. The program is run by volunteer lifeguards and offers an opportunity for water- walking, lap swim and treading water.
This is a great opportunity to get quality time at the pool doing one of those three activities.
Additional projects worth mentioning include the planned replacement of the city river boat dock system and the continued pro-active removal of the ash trees in the parks.
The city boat dock system was severely damaged by the flooding last September. Weather permitting, the new docks will be installed in May. The cost to replace the dock system will be covered by FEMA funds.
With the inevitable arrival of the emerald ash borer and anticipated loss of ash trees, a pro-active effort to remove and replace ash trees from the parks has been initiated in hopes to save and spread the cost of the removal and replanting over time.
Upcoming preparations for events and activities will continue. Dates to remember include:
• June 17 — Charles City Whitewater Challenge.
• June 24 — Iowa Games Canoe/Kayak.
• July 12-14 — Iowa DNR Project Aware.
• July 26 — RAGBRAI.
• Aug. 19 — Artafest.
An important reminder as you are using our trails this summer: The Charley Western Trail bridge is closed due to the partial collapse of the bridge. Enjoy the other portions of the trail that remain open, but please, avoid the bridge area both by land and water as there is a very real danger of further bridge collapse.
Finally, thank you to Parks and Recreation Director Steve Lindaman and the Park and Rec crew for their hard work in maintaining the parks. For a town the size of Charles City, we have an exceptional amount of green space and an exceptional park system including the beautiful parks owned and maintained by the City Improvement Association.
Enjoy the parks, take good care of the parks and have a great summer.
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