Neosho council accepts comprehensive park plan

[admin]

This story was copied from the Joplin Globe Website (http://www.joplinglobe.com).


Neosho council accepts comprehensive park plan
By Dena Sloan - Globe Staff Writer

NEOSHO, Mo. - City leaders Tuesday night took another step toward city parks that they hope will make Neosho a regional draw for tourists, hikers and bikers.

The City Council accepted a comprehensive park plan, which calls for installing playground equipment, building baseball and soccer fields, installing hiking and biking trails, and building an amphitheater and skate park.

"I think it would be very logical that it would bring the traffic in," said John Lutz, a representative of Shafer, Kline & Warren, the Kansas City firm that developed the plan. "What we're trying to achieve is to really, truly enhance Neosho's position as a regional destination."

The main part of the plan includes the development of Morse Park, adding about 150 acres to the 208-acre park.

Over the course of 10 years, the city has purchased more than 100 properties bordering the park along Hickory Creek with plans of clearing the land for flood control.

The $3 million buyout was financed with a combination of federal and state grants, with the city shouldering about one-fourth of the bill.

The state awarded the city a matching $500,000 grant for the installation of 10,000 feet of walking trails, 10 parking lots, and picnic shelters and playgrounds. For Neosho's matching portion, city workers will provide in-kind labor.

The city will build athletic fields and undertake other projects as money becomes available, said Jim Cole, city manager. Work will likely begin next summer after the city receives final environmental clearances.

The Neosho Kiwanis Club has adopted Morse Park's development as a long-term project, already pledging about $5,000 for the installation of benches and shelters.

The comprehensive park plan also calls for creating links between recreation hubs in the city. Lutz suggested creating paths connecting Scenic, Morse and Big Spring parks, as well as the Neosho National Fish Hatchery, the Freeman Family YMCA, Crowder College and the downtown district. He said developing more walking and biking paths will encourage increased recreational activity.

"It will serve to get people out, improve community health, but also just to get people into the downtown area," he said.

Cole said the city does not yet have funding for the proposed developments outside Morse Park, which he estimated will ultimately cost $2 million to $3 million. He said it will probably take at least 10 years to complete the plan.

[admin]

WoW! I think this might be the best idea the city has ever thought of! Now, if only this could be completed in five years instead of ten.

[Scutter]

Of course they could sell the golf course and do it all next year and maybe have enough left over to pave a couple of streets.

[admin]

Hopefully they will finish the bike trails sooner than everything else...

The amphitheatre and skate park are also VERY MUCH needed for the kids. But I could understand these two taking a bit longer to construct. I wonder if the city knows about the skate park company in Joplin that has designed, constructed and installed skate parks for other nearby towns/cities?

Maybe your city can use some of the tce cleanup money they pocketed to speed up the process before they go to jail.

[shinobi]

Ummmm, I thought they didn't read the forum. Just about every one of those ideas have been discussed on here and the parks site for a loooong time.
Did someone tell a fib?:cool:

Oh, they probably have had this in mind for at least 10 or 15 years. Right?:rolleyes:

[Scutter]

Crow Boy put the idea on the forums about four years ago, they waited a full three months before they decided to implement "their idea" regarding Morse Park.

[admin]

This story was copied from the Neosho Daily News Website (http://www.neoshodailynews.com).


Other parks on betterment list
By MICHELLE PIPPIN / Daily News staff writer

John Lutz with Shafer, Kline and Warren, Inc., of Kansas City, presented the Neosho City Council with its comprehensive park plan in Tuesday night's council meeting.

The Neosho Daily News outlined the firm's proposal for the expansion of Morse Park in Wednesday's edition. Today, it will explain the proposed improvements and additions to other existing parks in Neosho, including Big Spring Park, Scenic Park and the Neosho Neighborhood Recreation Center.

Big Spring Park

"Big Spring Park is the crown jewel of the city's park system and is arguably one of the finest municipal parks in the state," the firm wrote in its proposal. "Often a destination for regional tourists, Big Spring Park offers a gushing perennial spring, an architecturally significant wading pool and bathhouse, a flower clock, rock outcrops and Neosho's Civil War Cave."

The firm's greatest challenge for Big Spring Park was knowing how to accommodate the interest of the natural and man-made beauty, and possibly a future cave interpretive center, and still preserve the park's unique character.

The Park Master Plan identifies areas adjacent to the park for future expansions, specifically to address the need for additional parking. Locating the additional parking off-site of the park would preserve it current property. The plan calls for the elimination of the current parking area however, to expand the north side of the park into an open area for sitting and leisure activities.

Another challenge for the Park Plan is the division of Big Spring Park by Spring Street. The plan suggests three things to address the problem.

The first option involves closing Spring Street at the park and re-routing traffic to Hill and Brook Streets.

A second option suggests the city close Spring Street at the park but extend McCord Street east of Big Spring Hill to join with East McCord Street.

If neither of these options are feasible, the plan suggests the city at least consider a signaled pedestrian crossing between the two halves of the park.

The plan further suggests the park receive some improvements including a paved path to accommodate the increased traffic between the Spring Grotto and the Civil War Cave, a restroom facility erected on the north side of the park, and continued renovations to the south-side restrooms, seating added at both the Spring Grotto and the point where the Big Spring surges out of the limestone rock wall, the mass planting of native evergreen and flowering shrubs in selected areas of the western bluff to add to the existing floral character of the park, and the planing of shade trees along Spring Street to cut down the visual intrusion of the adjacent businesses.

Scenic Park

Scenic Park is the city's only neighborhood park, located at the north end of town. Currently, it has a small ball field that consists of a dilapidated backdrop and the remains of a scoreboard, a newly refurbished restroom building with plans to upgrade another structure for the use of a concession stand and storage. There is a few pieces of old and scarred playground equipment and some shelters.

The Park Plan calls for the restoration of the ball field backdrop. It questions the need for a concession stand, given the park's ball field size is large enough only for recreational or practice, not competitive games.

The goal for Scenic Park is to attract more residents for its use. Doing so reduces opportunities for vandalism and other crimes and instills a sense of pride and ownership within the neighborhood's residents.

The plan suggests the city remove all existing playground equipment and put into place new equipment into an area shock-absorbing surfacing. Older park-goers would be attracted to a new trail loop around the park's perimeter, and shade trees should be planted along Main and Jefferson Streets, as well as inside the park, to both provide shade and to define the edges of the park.

Finally, the Park Plan suggests the city provide signage for the designated parking areas of the park.

Neosho Neighborhood Recreation Center

"The Neighborhood Recreational Center (NRC) is the prime location for organized indoor sports," the Park Plan describes. "(It) also provides meeting rooms for citizens and indoor exercise facilities. A public swimming pool was built to the immediate north, and two tennis courts, an outdoor basketball court and an open area for volleyball or picnic tables are located behind the building. At the base of the steep slope toward the rear of the property is a lone soccer field with a precipitous gravel drive."

The Park Plan calls for the elimination of the soccer field, given the expansion of Morse Park would increase the city's soccer fields in that location. It also calls for the elimination of the tennis courts and outdoor basketball courts, since the high school, located just across the boulevard, provide both. Instead, the plan suggests removal of the outdoor ball facilities and the expansion of the center itself, to provide a larger indoor gymnasium.

An outline of Shafer, Kline and Warren's proposals for the construction of a walking/biking trail that links all the city's park, as well as the YMCA and Crowder College Campus, wll be included in Friday's editions.

[Scutter]

I see Jimmy got to them with his idea of digging out that damned cave and I want to go on record here as saying, when the first human bone turns up I am going to sue the city for every penny Jimmy has. Leave that grave site alone James, it ain't your place to rob our graves.

[admin]

And I don't much appreciate them removing the tennis courts behind the Rec Center. I refuse to play on the courts @ the high school for many reasons... Maybe the Rec Center does need the additional space and so-be-it, but maybe they could build additional courts elsewhere that aren't quite so public and on school property? The Morse Park courts are great, but everytime I go to play there someone is always throwing around a basketball. And I like to play at night, does the Morse Park courts have lighting? I can't remember...

[Scutter]

I have to say that I do not agree that closing the street by the Big Spring Park is a good idea. There are many people who drive past the park on that street merely for a break in their day. I can buy off on a pedestrian light but closing the street and the adjacent parking area is not an option I feel is worthy of consideration.

[admin]

Yea, the idea of them closing down Big Spring Park Hill, or whatever people want to call it, REALLY urks me... I refuse to let them do so.

[admin]

Originally posted by Scutter
I see Jimmy got to them with his idea of digging out that damned cave and I want to go on record here as saying, when the first human bone turns up I am going to sue the city for every penny Jimmy has. Leave that grave site alone James, it ain't your place to rob our graves.


I say if they start digging in the cave again we should start up a website like CivilWarCaveGrave.com, or something to that effect... Stating some facts about the cave being a burial site. Just imagine the publicity a site like that could get! It just might put an end to Jimmy's nonsense.

[Scutter]

I think we will fight that with a bit more than a web site Admin. Trust me when I tell you that I am not the only resident of this town who wants him to stay out of that damned cave.

[shinobi]

Originally posted by admin
Yea, the idea of them closing down Big Spring Park Hill, or whatever people want to call it, REALLY urks me... I refuse to let them do so.

Whaaaaat? Close down Big Spring Hill? Damn, I had to go back and read that. That is one of the most asinine things I have ever heard! Thats one of the busiest streets in town! Close it? HA! They'll get the public demonstrations they so fear if they ever try! What's wrong with the park being divided? It's part of it's charm. Put in a light you nimnals!
:wtf: are you thinking? Extend McCord? You don't even take care of the streets we have! Why build a new one that you won't take care of? Gawd!!!!!!!!!! Are all of you city dads, brain F***ING DEAD???????????

[Scutter]

how many thousands of dollars the city paid these consultants for that brilliant piece of work.

[admin]

This was copied from the Neosho Daily News Website (http://www.neoshodailynews.com).


Walking / biking trail in park plan
By MICHELLE PIPPIN / Daily News staff writer

John Lutz with Shafer, Kline and Warren, Inc., of Kansas City, presented the Neosho City Council with its comprehensive park plan in Tuesday night's council meeting.

Besides a significant expansion to Morse Park and improvements to Big Spring and Scenic Parks, the Master Park Plan also calls for the development of a walking and/or biking trail to connect all three parks, as well as the YMCA and the Crowder College campus.

A trail linking Scenic Park to Morse Park would offset Scenic Park's limited recreational opportunities. This trail would face some challenges with the need to cross Kansas City Southern (KCS) railroad tracks, but it would cross only a single set of tracks and can utilize an existing bridge over High School Branch Creek. The greatest challenge of the trail's development is its need to cross the tracks on N. College Street.

Due to some railroad crossing throughout Neosho, the city has plans to construct a road that runs from Baxter Street, south to Spring Street. The road will run parallel and east of the KCS railroad tracks near the current west Morse Park entrance.

The new road, which will be called Morse Parkway, will solve the railroad crossing dilemmas in connecting Scenic Park to Morse Park with a walking/biking trail.

A 1/2-mile walking trail from Big Spring Park to Morse Park would encourage visitors to stroll through Neosho's historic downtown square. The same trail would offer the same stroll from Morse Park to the downtown square. Railroad crossings are not an issue with this trail as it could cross the existing KCS railroad tracks on Spring Street which are not among the six closings in the city.

The park plan also calls for a future extension of the Big Spring Park walking trail west to Neosho High School, which would provide a 3/4-mile trail through the heart of Neosho. This trail is important because it connects the city's recreational offerings to those of the high school.

Perhaps the most extensive of the proposed trails, and certainly the longest at 4.5-miles, is a trail that connects Morse Park to the YMCA and Crowder College campus. This trail would wind through a large residential section of town, south of the downtown are. Again, this trail would link the city's recreational opportunities to those offered at the YMCA, Crowder College, Bicentennial Park and the Neosho National Fish Hatchery.

The proposed start of the trail would be located at Hickory Creek Bridge on McKinney Street. It travels west to the entrance of the Neosho Fish Hatchery, which has already agreed to allow the city to cross National Fish and Wildlife Service property with the trail.

It then proceeds south of the hatchery, west, crosses the KCS railroad tracks and intersects with Lafayette Street. The primary route would turn south on Lafayette and merge into Pineville Road.

The plan warns, however, the city will find areas of constricted rights-of-way along these roads. In some cases, the city will need to cover existing open storm sewers to provide a shoulder for the trail. At other locations, slopes will require additional earthwork and, in some cases, retaining walls for the trail's construction.

An alternate route is also proposed that parallels the KCS right-of-way on private property instead of following city streets. Despite its proximity to the railroad, the alternate route would be more scenic as trail users would enjoy the wooded bluffs along the railbed and a greater sense of separation from homes and apartments. Unfortunately, the alternate route would require partial acquisitions of private land or trail easements from a number of landowners and may require total acquisition of three to five properties.

With either trail, the city would encounter a challenge at the crossing beneath Highway 60. Currently, there exists limited space between the highway bridge abutments, Pineville Road and the KCS right-of-way. In addition, the roadway is approximately four to six feet higher than the railbed. The actual route beneath the bridge would be determined by the willingness of the adjacent landowners to sell portions of their property or grant a trail easement to the city.

Also, the city would face engineering issues presented by the steep slopes west of Pineville Road and at both bridge abutments.

South of Highway 60, the trail would assume a more rural, wooded character. It would turn east on the south side of Landis Road and then south along Doniphan Road. It would pass Bicentennial Park, which offers woodland trails for walking and horseback riding. A pedestrian-activated signal is recommended for safe crossing to Bicentennial Park.

The main trail would continue south until the existing signaled crossing at the Doniphan and Highway D intersection. From here, it would follow Highway D, to the parking areas for the YMCA and Crowder College campus.

[Scutter]

most towns have walking trails in their cites. They are called sidewalks, something we apparently never heard of in this town, either in the construction of, or maintenance thereof. While this may be an admirable goal for the future, I seriously doubt that any property owners on the proposed routes are going to voluntarily either sell their property or grant an easement for the purpose of increased public access to their remaining property. I guess we could put bike lanes on our existing streets except we have never painted stripes on any of our streets before and it is really hard to get the paint to show up at the bottom of a pothole. We need to get real and quit living in a dream world here, it ain't that high on the list of the citizen's priorities. Give us Police and Fire Protection, good streets, decent parks with equipment that is not rusting down, a water and sewer system that works and otherwise stay the hell out of our lives.

[Scutter]

What do you want to bet the first thing the city does with that money is try to buy easements for the proposed walking trails?

[Scutter]

We are now being prepped for a city buy out of both the Episcopal Church and Mills Park Center and this is where I draw a Citizen's Line. Read my lips Jim, you ain't in the Real Estate Business and neither is this City. I have to love the quote from Cole in today's paper, "The City has no intention of removing either structure" should the City purchase the properties. Damn it, the time for spending our money on Jimmy's pipedreams has passed. He wants expanded parks and he can't or won't take care of the parks we have, if anyone has any doubts of that, take a look at Neosho Parks.com. Just watch your backs people, because I smell a "deal" coming before April.

[Scutter]

and a way to help out some buddy who happened to be a Consultant. Why does Jim Cole dream these grand thoughts when there is not even the money, according to Jim, in the City budget to fix a few potholes? I guess he wants to leave something here so we will all remember him. What he needs to realize is that he has left things to remember him by, streets you can't drive on, water pipes that leak, the highest water and sewer bills in the state, a big mess at the back of Big Spring Park, a water retention system that does not work, a Municipal Auditorium that has not been maintained in years, the memory of what was once Teledyne Clubhouse, and, of course, a world class golf course. What better way to be remembered.

[Scutter]

It is my understanding that somebody is now pushing for this plan to be implemented sooner rather than later. I look for this to be an issue just as soon as the Moark storm is over.

[LARRY]

Don't hold your breath Scutter this is just another detour from the moark heat in the air!

[Scutter]

as does the rest of the plans and surveys that the City paid big bucks to Consultants to prepare for us. Of course, the Consultants cashed the checks on their way out of town and we have nothing constructive left but a set of reports will sit in the back of Jim's file cabinet for the next ten years or so, thankfully.

[carbonstar]

Scenic Park could use some work, but then again that whole neighborhood could use a facelift. I live on Old Scenic Drive and drive thru the north side of town frequently -lemme tell ya, many of the homes on the north side of town are an eyesore. Lots of run-down rentals and senior homes in dire need of repairs and updates. There are piles of trash in many yards, slumping roofs, leaning sheds, rotting siding etc. Very little pride. Low income areas don't have to be trashy, they can still be clean and neat while remaining modest. I think the city ought to crack down on city cleanliness codes. And for those who can't afford repairs perhaps there could be grants made available for clean-up.

[Scutter]

I totally agree with you Carbonstar but it just will not happen until the leaders of this town suddenly decide that the North End is actually part of the city.

[didfit]

You can get a ticket for having an antique car, in your yard. But you can move a house into, the North Neosho Metroplex and let it rot down, or have a rental house, that is seven clicks below squalor( filth and wretched poverty), and thats just fine.

[Scutter]

It all comes down to one thing Didfit, and that is the adoption of a Ward System of Government once more in the City of Neosho. Until or unless this happens the North End and the East Side will remain neglected and nobody will particularly care whether or not those areas are maintained. I guarantee you that an overgrown lawn on Oak Ridge Drive will receive more attention than an overgrown lawn on Lincoln Street. The only bright spot is that some folks in town are now beginning to invest in the North Side and some small change will be happening up there in the next few years.

[Scutter]

I hear the new City Manager has dusted off this plan and has intentions of implementing it. I have also heard that the City just paid sixty-five thousand dollars for the antique store (junk depository) just outside the city limits by the Hickory Creek Bridge.

[Scutter]

It appears that the rumor was true since it was in last night's paper. Funny thing is, the rest of the rumor is that the City is currently working on a plan to acquire the property all the way to Lime Kiln Road to put in a Roaring River type facility, under private control. Wonder what they are going to do when they reach the Spicer property and find that not everybody is going to cave in to City pressure to sell?

[Scutter]

I guess removal of the ducks from the Big Spring Park is part of the Comprehensive Parks Plan too. It seems to me a bit strange that 32 ducks can contaminate an area but millions of birds at MoArk will not.

[joetowngirl]

Well, now, Scutter, apparently Neosho can't tie up all the traffic to wait for ducks.....we would not want to attempt to have a tourist attraction like the ducks at the Peabody in Memphis after all;) - just one of the "must see" attractions for tourists in that fair city.


The ducks crossing the street at Big Spring Park might interfere with the massive number of tourists racing to reach downtown Neosho......at least in the new city manager's dreams.

I guess a little duck poo in the park is a far worse environmental hazard than tons of chicken crap in a different location.

Oh, well, I'd rather be in Memphis anyway:D

[wuli]

I thought it was a pretty good idea to reduce the fecal coliform in the city park but after thinking on it for several hours I am not sure anymore and here is why.

The city manager probably took several days brain storming this so as to not offend animal lovers and at the rate he gets paid his decision cost us 800 bucks or more!

The mallards located at the park and at the fish hatchery do have a history that few know about. The original birds were hatched out right here in Neosho by a couple of aspiring young biologist. The year was circa 1974.

Once the birds obtained flight they found it to difficult to land on the street from which they hatched and moved to the hatchery. Later some of these birds migrated to the park.

[Scutter]

I really don't care one way or the other, however, I do find it odd that the City would take this stand with fecal contamination concerning 32 ducks and yet refused to hold any open debate about the MoArk expansion which adds tons of fecal contamination to our environment every day.

[fisherman]

I am very interested in the story about the introduction of the ducks to the hatchery....especially about the young biologist.

This sounds like a story that a friend would very much like to hear. If you could give a name of some kind of contact, I would like to pass it on.

Thanks.