By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
“We want to hear from you,” Decatur Mayor Dan Rickord told an estimated 60 people attending a Wednesday night meeting at Riverside Center.
The meeting was held to allow city residents the opportunity to check out concept renderings of three different proposals for a downtown park and to pose questions about same.
The park would be mostly located in the area of a city-owned parking lot on the west side of the St. Marys River, between Monroe and Jackson streets. A smaller portion would be situated on the east side of the river, beside Riverside Center.
The proposed park is likely a couple of years away from becoming a reality, but, as the mayor has said in the past, a plan is needed before applying for any grants: “Grants are out there, but you have to have a plan.”
A local committee has been studying the idea for a year or so and, aided by Engineering Resources, Inc., of Fort Wayne, came up with three separate proposals for a park. The committee was comprised of 15 people and they received input from members of the Mayor’s Youth Council.
Engineering Resources put together plans for Promenade Park in Fort Wayne “and a bunch of other places around Fort Wayne,” Rickord noted. Three members of the firm were on hand for the meeting.
Enlarged drawings of all three plans were available for viewing at the meeting.
Numerous questions and ideas were put forth by people in attendance.
The mayor was pleased with the turnout. “Yes, I was very happy with it; I counted around 60 people,” he told WZBD.com.
Rickord, who said that he has been studying the idea for some two years, is hoping for a big response from the public. “Help shape a park that everyone will love,” it was said in an announcement of the meeting.
The acceptance of ideas and selection of a plan is rather open-ended at this time.
“If it works out (that a proposal can be decided upon and grants sought yet this year), great,” he said after the meeting. “If not, then we will wait until next year.”
Survey information is available at:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/J7L3VWY
A QR code is available on the City of Decatur’s website.
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