FAYETTEVILLE -- The regional park will open in August, Mayor Lioneld Jordan announced Thursday after the Rotary Club of Fayetteville presented to the city $100,000 toward construction of a playground.
Jordan got teary-eyed as Rotarians handed him the big check during their gathering at Mermaids on North College Avenue.
"I was going to keep it together today," he said.
The donation presented Thursday was the first phase of the Rotary Club's plan to get a playground at the 620-acre site. Rotarians will push fundraisers to get an extra $50,000 to the city before the end of the year, said Harrison Pittman, president-elect.
"We'll essentially ask citizens, our friends and neighbors to come and invest in their own community," he said. "Let's finish this off."
The park's planning, at 2600 W. Judge Cummings Road near Interstate 49 and Cato Springs Road, has been underway since 2000.
The Parks and Recreation Advisory Board chose the area in 2003, and in 2010, Chambers Bank donated about 200 acres for the park.
The city bought a nearly 390-acre preserve just to the west of the regional park in March 2014 for $3 million. The Walton Foundation covered half of the cost and the Fayetteville Natural Heritage Association committed another $300,000.
Going by the name Kessler Mountain Regional Park, unless a large donation comes along that would warrant a name change, the August opening date is a reality because construction is on schedule, said Parks and Recreation Director Connie Edmonston.
"We'll have a huge celebration," she said. "We're in the process of coming up with programs for people to do."
Six soccer fields will be ready Aug. 20 for the 1,600 or so children in youth sports leagues. Four baseball fields will be constructed and ready in the spring for play after the grass grows a bit, Edmonston said.
Hikers and bikers already can take advantage of the trails at Kessler Mountain just to the west and $10 million worth of utilities and road work is complete.
"It'll be a big day for everyone," Edmonston said.
As for the preserve side of the area, the City Council in May approved a plan for seven more miles of trails coiling around the eastern flank of the 500-foot plateau. About 6 miles of trails will get a sprucing up as well.
The whole thing should be finished by summer 2017, Jordan said.
"If this city lasts 10,000 years -- that park's going to go on forever," he said. "And that Kessler Mountain that we've preserved -- it goes on forever. And we sort of go on forever."
The city is still looking for about $20 million to complete the regional park master plan, Edmonston said.
Four more baseball fields and four softball fields also are in the works, along with tennis, basketball and sand volleyball courts, a new trailhead and a large pavilion, in addition to the playground and extra miles of trails, according to the city's website.
The Parks Board will meet July 11 to approve the partnership with the Rotary Club to build the playground, which will then head to the City Council. To coincide with the Rotary donation, the city intends to contribute $120,000, which would come from a five-year capital improvement plan.
The playground should be open by early 2017, Edmonston said.
For the Rotarians, whose creed has been to contribute to a greater sense of community, the playground will serve as a place for generations of families to enjoy, Pittman said.
"It's just part of what sets us apart as a city in Arkansas and the rest of the country," he said.
NW News on 07/01/2016