The Monticello Parks Commission held its monthly meeting at 6 p.m. on Monday, November 6, in the Sadie Johnson Building at Jordan Park. The meeting was called to order and the roll was called, and the minutes from the previous meeting were approved.
Parks Superintendent Gerald Shepherd reported to the commissioners. He said that fall baseball and Miracle League ball just wrapped up. He said that his crews have been edging sidewalks in the city park, and they have also cut down three trees at the park. He said there is an additional tree that needs cutting, but they will have to hire someone because they can’t guarantee how it will fall because it is dead. Shepherd also said that his crews are beginning to perform maintenance on their equipment. He said that several mowers aren’t operational, or are just out of commission. He plans to gather this type of equipment and auction it off to fund new equipment purchases.
Ashley Rodermund from the Finance Department of the City of Monticello was present to present two proposed operating budgets for the Parks Department. The first option would give the Parks employees a three percent cost of living raise, and the other option would give a five percent raise. The commissioners voted to approve the City Council to vote on the options at the upcoming council meeting. Rodermund said that the council votes to keep uniformity between all divisions. If they choose a raise percentage, it will apply across the board to keep all departments at the same rate.
There is a disc golf tournament set for Saturday, December 2. A group from Conway is supposed to come down and make sure that all landscaping and upkeep are done before the date of the tournament.
The Parks Department is also doing work on the Burlington Field concession stand. This is the concession stand that is rotten, and not the one with the concrete backing. Crews are going through and removing things from the building to determine what is still usable. The county is helping work on this project as part of in-kind work owed to the city. The ultimate plan is for the structure to be demolished after it has been cleaned out.
The Monticello Girl’s Softball League has set its dates for next season. Practices will start on March 4. There will be a preseason league tournament on April 6, and games will start on April 18.
“It’s the best thing ever,” said Amanda Killingsworth when giving the Miracle League update.
She noted that the fall season had just ended, and she already had several players wanting to know when they could play again. They are already planning for the Spring season. Killingsworth also noted that they would extend their season if they could get lights on the field.
Jeff Newton gave an update on the lake trail project to close out the meeting. He said that Phase 1 and the change orders have been completed. Top Trails has moved all of their equipment out because the $100,000 has not been awarded yet from the previous grant cycle. They are in constant contact with the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) to resolve this.
Newton noted that the project hit a snag recently. The Environmental Division of ARDOT has flagged the area as a “wetlands area” and is requiring special permitting for the remainder of the project. These permits are obtained from the Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg Division. Newton said that they plan to get the whole project permitted rather than in pieces. Once this permit is obtained, they will open Phase 2 to bids.
The Halloween ride was a huge success, there were approximately 60 to 70 bikes there.
Newton said that a current need for the trails is signage to show people where they are. He suggested that everyone download the Trail Forks app. The app has the map in there and allows riders to report any maintenance issues they may find on the trail.
It was also discussed finding ways to keep motorized vehicles off the trail and disc golf greens. Newton said that he has asked Sheriff Tim Nichols to patrol the area a little more. There were several options discussed, but none were set in stone.
With no other business, the Parks Commission adjourned until January’s meeting.
