A consultant hired to develop a draft of a five-year master plan for the Bartholomew County Parks system is suggesting that the closure of two parks be considered.
That was among the findings from Ed Curtin, a planner and former city parks administrator, who presented the first draft of the master plan Thursday before the Bartholomew County Park Board.
Curtin said of the 12 county parks, the closure of two — Clifford and Elizabethtown — should be considered as options. The two communities already have parks within their corporate boundaries, he said.
Clifford Park, located on a 3-acre former school site, is located east of the town of Clifford on County Road 550 North, The county park in Elizabethtown is also on 3 acres, according to the proposed master plan.
Curtin also suggested upgrading the fencing at Dunn Stadium on the fields and on the perimeter of the park, which is located on State Road 11 next to the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds. That recommendation was made since it is a park that generates revenue for the county, he said.
Azalia Park, which has been run by the county park board since 1996, is in good shape, but Curtin told the park board that it should consider replacing the playground.
Park board president Dennis Pierce told about a dozen members of the public in attendance that the draft of the five-year master plan was being viewed for the first time and was not final.
That sentiment was shared by Curtin, who also said the draft represents the beginning of a conversation concerning the future of county parks in Bartholomew County.
“We just want to get our arms around what we have going on here,” Curtin said.
Curtin, who said he visited all of the county’s parks as part of his work to develop the master plan, compared Bartholomew County to other counties that have county parks — Harrison, Monroe, Brown, Johnson, Hendricks, Hamilton and St. Joseph in northern Indiana.
The analysis of each county looked at the number of full-time and part-time employees they had, the number of parks, their annual budgets, programming available, among other items.
Bartholomew County was the only parks system that had no full-time employees and no programming, Curtin said.
Currently, Bartholomew County has five part time-employees in place.
“This is really a snapshot of how you compare to some of your peers,” Curtin said.
The county should also consider having a full-time employee who could perform administrative duties and labor, Curtin said. In addition, Curtin also recommended the county lease some of its equipment due to age.
“We have to think about taking care of what we have out there,” Curtin said. “It’s a topic of discussion of what you want to do.”
Curtin also said improvements are needed at some parks, such as renovations to the ball fields at Mt. Healthy Park, while fencing repairs on the fields and the back portion were also identified at Petersville Park. In total, he said it would cost the county $1.3 million over the next five years to make all the necessary improvements contained in the proposed plan.
The creation of a website and social media accounts to let the public know about the county parks system was among the other recommendations.
“This document can help you look at next year and beyond,” Curtin said.
Columbus resident Chuck Doup asked what the potential impact would be on the city’s plans for its own parks, but Curtin said he doesn’t anticipate any impact based on what the county would do.
More feedback will be solicited from stakeholders, including the Bartholomew County Council, the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. and other entities.
“We want (the plan) to be right and what the community is looking for,” Curtin said.
Bartholomew County Commissioner Carl Lienhoop told people in attendance that the proposed master plan “paints a sobering picture” of the county parks system based on some of the suggestions from Curtin.
He added that it puts pressure not only on the county commissioners, but also the county council and the parks board to implement some recommendations in the proposed plan.
However, Lienhoop said there have been other pressing needs such as road and bridge improvements facing the county, noting that he was speaking on behalf of all three county commissioners.
“I’d have to say the parks have taken a backseat over the years,” Lienhoop said. “The commissioners feel like we’ve probably reached a point in time that there needs to be a paid person to spearhead the parks work.”
Lienhoop also said it remains to be seen what will happen in the future.
“Whenever there’s a challenge, I think we can meet it,” he said.
Pierce said after the meeting that the proposed master plan pointed out areas in which the county can make some improvements.
“I think it shows some deficiencies for what we have, but also what we can do to make our parks better,” Pierce said.
Pierce said he favors the idea of having a full-time person on board if statistics indicate there is a need. He said it was still too early to tell about the future of the county parks in Clifford and Elizabethtown.
“I don’t have enough information to make sure whether that’s a smart decision or not,” Pierce said.
Curtin will submit the proposed master plan to the outdoor recreation division of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources in mid-January. That agency will also provide feedback before a final master plan is presented to the county in April, Curtin said.
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The proposed five-year master plan for the Bartholomew County Parks system will be submitted to the outdoor recreation division of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources in mid-January. A final master plan will be presented in April.
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