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Field Of Dreams: Bratt Residents Get Look At Their New Park
February 13, 2009
Clark Caraway begin work on his dream of a community park in Bratt 10 years ago. For the first time, he saw that dream in black and white Thursday night.
Caraway and several other Bratt residents even formed Bratt Community Park, Inc. back in 2001 to work toward the park.
Fast forward to Thursday night…Caraway sat in a public meeting at the Shiloh Free Will Baptist Church as Joy Jones from Escambia County’s parks and recreation department presented preliminary plan drawings for the Bratt Regional Park on Highway 4.
About 30 area residents learned that preliminary plans for the park include a paved, 8-foot wide walking/biking track around the perimeter of the park. There will also be exercise and rest stations positioned along the track.
Plans also call for one or two fenced softball fields, a half-court basketball court, a covered pavilion and playground equipment for children of various ages. The softball fields will not be lit for night play; in fact, the park’s hours will follow that of other county parks — sunrise to sunset.
The money is already in the bank, so to speak, to fund the park’s amentities. District 5 Escambia Commissioner Kevin White has $200,000 in LOST (Local Option Sales Tax) funds set aside to fund the park’s development.
“We are trying to use the money we have to accomodate everybody on this park,” White said.
Some members of the audience Thursday night questioned if a recreation building, perhaps one large enough for an indoor basketball court, could be built on the propery. Jones said she did not believe that was possible with current funding. Other residents questioned lighting the park to keep it open until a reasonable time at night, running drinking water and other items not included in the concept.
Jones will work on finalizing park plans and options. She will have those plans posted on the county’s web site within 30 days, and the county will hold another public meeting within six weeks for public review.
Also at Thursday night’s meeting, White praised Kale and Donna Schneider who traded 57 acres of mostly wetlands that county owned on Hanks Road for their 13.19 acres at the corner of West Highway 4 and Bratt Road for the park.
“He stepped up to the plate to better his community,” White said of Mr. Schneider.
The new park will be located along Highway 4 between Bratt First Baptist Church and Northview High School
Pictured above: Clark Caraway discusses the new Bratt Regional Park at a Thursday night public meeting at Shiloh Baptist Church. Pictured below: Joy Jones (left) from Escambia Parks and Recreation discusses preliminary Bratt Regional Park plans with a local resident. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
5 Responses to “Field Of Dreams: Bratt Residents Get Look At Their New Park”
So happy that we’ll have a place for people of all ages and athletic abilities to exercise! I wonder how affordable and feasible it would be to make a ropes course? The “Amazeing Corn Maze” off of Hwy 4 is a local attraction that actually pulls in quite a few people and groups from the surrounding area. This (a ropes course) could be one more thing that could benefit local residents and give visitors one more thing to enjoy.
Not sure if another park is needed, already have NWF and Molino park, there having a tough time paying bills because of a lack of attendance (Funding)..hope all know the county will provide “no” assistance after it’s turned over to the community..If they don’t get enough support from the Baseball/ Softball players, it will look worse than the new Cantonment Ball Park! what a huge waste of tax dollars! and shameful…Our Parks Director hasn’t a clue..look at the rest of South Florida, and Adjoining state of Alabama..huge parks to service a whole community! they look great and are well maintained…Nobody wants to work together anymore! so what happens, a bunch of neighborhood parks that are run-down not maintained!
A tennis court would be nice! =)
Thanks so much for doing this for bratt. i will be living next to it but thank you so much=)
I know Mr. Caraway has worked very hard to see this plan to this point. My sincere thanks for his hard work, along with several other community members.
I hope all of the residents of the Bratt area will use this park as much as possible. It is about time the County did something like this for the Bratt community.