City Of Jackson issued the following announcement on May 25.
DOG PARK OR BALLFIELD? This question has been been the topic of discussion on facebook and in the community over the past several weeks and much community feedback and input has been received. We appreciate everyone who has chimed in.
The City does not see this as an "either or" proposition. A dog park was identified in a community survey in 2020 and previously as a top community wish when it comes to amenities. Dog parks are also growing in popularity across the country in cities large and small. Development of the dog park continues to be a high priority for the City Council and Park Board. In 2021 a community survey was done on potential locations for a dog park and Albertus Fields was among the top locations selected.
Using a portion of Field 2 (south field) at Albertus Fields was identified as a proposed location for a dog park by the Park Board due to a perceived lack of usage, existing infrastructure, fencing, parking, accessibility to the trails, and the fact that many people already walk their dogs down in the area. The outfield would still be available for other purposes along with all of Field One.
The "debate" that has been sparked has brought to the forefront larger questions about Albertus Fields. Since the floods of 2018 and 2019 the fields have largely been dormant other than being used primarily as practice fields for football and baseball. Electricity hasn't been turned on since before 2018.
In the upcoming weeks and months the City Council and Park Board will be studying questions such as: (1). Are Albertus Fields meeting the needs of the community? (2). If not, what needs to be done and how much is it going to cost so they do meet our needs? (3). Is the current location the proper place for a ballfield complex?; or, should we look at building ballfields in another location? (4). Is the community willing to pay for the large cost it will likely take to bring the current fields up to par and sustainable long term? (5). Is the community willing to pay for the cost of new fields somewhere else? (6). Is the current level of usage and projected future usage enough to justify investing large sums of money into the existing fields or any new fields? These are just a sampling of the questions the will be considered in the upcoming weeks and months.
The answers to these questions will not come overnight and are not necessarily easy. They are all part of larger community conversations that will need to be had.
Thank you to everyone who has chimed in on the recent conversations and we will welcome your input in the weeks and months to come as these issues are considered.
Original source can be found here.
Source: City Of Jackson
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