County to apply for grant for new athletic field

During a Jan. 20 meeting, members of the Alleghany County Commission requested County Manager Don Adams to complete an application for a N.C. Parks and Recreation Trust Fund (PARTF) matching grant totaling $261,525.

If approved, the funds will be utilized for the development of Open Space Park, a field-oriented project presented to the Commission by Alleghany County Recreation Director David Evans.

"The purpose of this facility is to allocate proper facilities to comply with a growing need for athletic fields," explained Evans. "Also this facility can be used as an access point for the future Greenway, which is proposed along the Sparta Bypass." Referencing the athletic fields, he stated that the local recreation department has 250 children involved in baseball or softball programs, 170 in the soccer program and 160 in the football program.

At present, the department's soccer program is being held, on a year-to-year basis, on the Martin-Marietta property. The recreation department is also working with the Alleghany County School System to utilize their property for other sporting activities.

If funds were made available, the park—with a proposed location adjacent to Andrews Trucking, also clarified to be the fifth property on the left on Duncan Street from Grandview Drive—could be the site of program-related activities, and would have other uses, including adult free-play soccer, walking or jogging, pet exercise and others.

The presentation also included plan objectives and strategy. Among the items listed included the grading of open area and a 75-space parking area, constructing bathrooms and a concession serving area, paving a walking trail from the parking lot to fields as well as a bridge across Bledsoe Creek, constructing a handicap resting pad and making everything handicap accessible.

Additional objectives and strategy include constructing a fence or berm parallel to the parkway to prevent the interaction of children and the highway, and preserving flora and fauna found within the area.

Touching on funding options, Evans reiterated the primary option would be the one-to-one match from the county through the PARTF grant. A second option would be through private funding, along with a limited amount of county funds.

In his conclusion, Evans offered, "Alleghany County would greatly benefit from the construction of this project on a program level and a public level. "

 

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