Winfield Township park renovation plans presented to public
WINFIELD TWP — A packed house caught a glimpse of what might be the future on Thursday night, Feb. 29, as supervisors and representatives from Pittsburgh-based landscape architecture firm Pashek+MTR presented updated plans for the renovation of the community park, located just outside the township’s municipal building.
The park upgrade has been in the cards for nearly a year. The township asked the public to contribute to the upgrade’s master plan through an online survey starting in April 2023.
The community park currently features a walking trail, a playground, and a shaded pavilion with picnic benches. The renovation plans, presented by Heather Cuyler, call for many new additions, including a combined pickleball and basketball court, a nine-hole disc golf course, a massive pollinator meadow and a gathering space for outdoor public events.
“We kept hearing that we really needed a town center where we can have food trucks and concerts and that type of thing,” Cuyler said.
Outdoorsy folks would benefit from the planned addition of two more walking trails adjacent to the one already at the park, as well as a connection to the Butler-Freeport Community Trail.
“This connection ... would allow people to come into the park and take a break and enjoy the natural features,” Cuyler said.
Another planned addition would be a “green parking lot” — an environmentally friendly parking lot which uses non-asphalt paving materials to reduce stormwater runoff volume.
Township Supervisor Matthew Klabnik said the township does not intend to use taxpayer money to pay for the upgrades. Instead, it will rely on grant money from the state, backed by royalties from an oil and gas lease it signed with PennEnergy for the park’s land.
Klabnik said the account for those royalties has built up to $354,000.
“A number of years ago, we signed a non-surface gas lease which gives us money that comes into the park,” Klabnik said. “It’s restricted funds that can only be spent on the park.”
Supervisors voted to allow Pashek+MTR to assist in writing two grant applications: the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’s Community Conservation Partnerships Program grant and the Department of Community and Economic Development’s COVID-19 American Rescue Plan Act Multi-Purpose Community Facilities Program grant.
The plans also call for a new indoor recreation center, to be located at the building on Brose Road, which once housed the now-defunct Winfield Township Volunteer Fire Department.
While the fire department ceased operations in 2018, it still exists as a legal entity, and for now, that legal entity still owns the building. The township plans to acquire it, according to Klabnik.
Plans for the recreation center call for an indoor pickleball court, two large multipurpose rooms, new metal roofing, and overhauled lighting and insulation. Architect Cherie Moshier also floated the idea of hosting Amazon pick-up lockers at the site.
During the meeting, Scott Docherty, president of local steel building manufacturer CID Associates, presented a $2,000 donation to the township to benefit the project.
“I’m here representing the business,” Docherty said. “It’s important that we all team up together and ask for these grants.”
