To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
Through: David L. Corliss, Town Manager
From: Jeff Brauer, Director of Parks and Recreation
Title
Resolution Approving a Grant Application to the Land and Water Conservation Fund for Improvements at Centennial Park [located at 22 North Gilbert Street]
Body
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Executive Summary
The purpose of this agenda item is to seek Town Council approval by resolution of a grant application to the Land and Water Conservation Fund for improvements at Centennial Park.
The Town‘s oldest park was acquired in the 1970’s and is home to Burgess Pool, an athletic field, playground, picnic areas, tennis courts, basketball and open space. The 10-acre site has undergone several renovations including replacement of the playground, reconstruction of Burgess Pool and pool house and reconstruction of the athletic field area as a part of Craig and Gould streetscape and drainage improvements. The tennis and basketball court area is the only part of the park that has not been improved.
The courts are now approximately 40 years old and the underlying asphalt courts have significant damage and show more deterioration than any other park facility in Town. A plastic tile product placed in the 1990’s to improve court condition has also reached the end of its useful lifespan.
Centennial court replacement is included in the five-year capital improvement plan and scheduled for 2023. The Conservation Trust/Douglas County Shareback Fund and the General Long-Term Planning Fund are potential funding sources for replacement. The courts were also identified in the Town of Castle Rock ADA Transition Plan as requiring significant accessibility improvements. Design work required for a detailed cost estimate is not scheduled until 2022; however, preliminary estimates drawn from similar projects indicate that approximately $1.25 million will be required to fund replacement and accessibility improvements.
Initial court construction was partially funded through a Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) grant. The current LWCF grant cycle, administered by Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), is oriented toward the replacement of facilities previously funded by the LWCF. Discussions with CPW staff indicate that Centennial project may be a good candidate for the program. If awarded, the Town would have 3 years to complete the project, which falls within the Town’s proposed project schedule.
Notification and Outreach Efforts
Future public process will inform the final design.
The Parks and Recreation Commission unanimously endorsed the approval of the Resolution as introduced by title on September 15, 2021.
Budget Impact
Staff has prepared a grant application seeking $625,000 or approximately half of the estimated $1.25 million project cost. Funds would replace the asphalt courts with post-tension concrete. Initial thinking on the project would be to convert one of the three tennis courts to a pickleball court - as requested by several neighborhood residents - replace two of the existing tennis courts and replace the basketball court. New fencing would be provided, along with accessible walkways, retaining walls, seating and shade structures.
Staff Recommendation
Parks and Recreation staff are recommending the approval of the included grant application (Exhibit 1) by Resolution (Attachment A) to take advantage of the current LWCF emphasis on replacement projects. CPW requires a Town Council Resolution of support for the grant application, which is due October 4, 2021. Notice of award of a grant is scheduled to occur in the spring. Project design is planned to occur in 2022 with construction planned for 2023.
Proposed Motion
“I move to approve the Resolution as introduced by title.”
Attachments
Attachment A Resolution
Exhibit 1 Grant Application