2 parks projects completed for summer
BUTLER TWP — Jade’s Dog Park is set to reopen Wednesday, May 22, after being closed for more than a month for workers to make improvements, repair fencing, and aerate and seed the lawn in and around the park.
Lance Welliver, director of Butler County Parks and Recreation, said at a meeting of the department’s board Tuesday, May 21, that the work was completed and dogs could return to the grassy, fenced-in area at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
Welliver said the dog park ground was saturated and ponds had formed, a damaged fence prevented the gate from closing properly, agility equipment had been pulled out of the ground and grass around the park had been damaged. The dog park was open through the winter for the first time this past year, which left less time for the department to make repairs as needed.
The dog park will still close from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Wednesday starting June 19, so park staff can perform maintenance.
“That gives us time to go in there without anybody using it to do any repairs, cleanup, that type of thing,” Welliver said. “It seemed to work well for us last year. We don’t want to kick people out when they are trying to enjoy it, but we want a designated time that we can go in there and make sure it’s maintained and updated.”
Jade’s Dog Park wasn’t the only project recently completed for Butler County Parks and Recreation. Welliver on Tuesday told the board Alameda Waterpark has been completely replastered and was being filled with water that day.
Butler County commissioners awarded All State Technology, of New Jersey, the contract to replaster the pool in April, at a cost of $643,000. Welliver said it had been about 10 years since the waterpark’s last replastering, so the difference is clearly evident.
“It has made such a huge difference to what it was, we redid the tile, redid the plaster,” Welliver said. “We’ll hopefully have some guards in there training in there this week or early next week.”
Jacob Bartholic, program manager for parks and recreation, said during the meeting that all of the seasonal staff positions at the department have been filled, including lifeguard positions.
Welliver also announced at the meeting Tuesday the Pennsylvania Recreation and Parks Society (PRPS) will present an award to Butler County Parks and Recreation for Park and Recreation Professionals Day July 19.
The society selects only one parks and recreation department per each of its three regions, and, according to Welliver, the department applied for the opportunity as part of District 1, the western part of Pennsylvania.
In addition to recognition from the state society on July 19, the Butler County commissioners will read a proclamation for the parks and recreation department. Welliver said the department will receive the recognition while it hosts the 2024 Butler Can-Am Police-Fire Games’ mountain bike race.
“Wonderful opportunity for us to apply to PRPS for this and be selected for it to be recognized,” Welliver said. “We’re looking forward to that, tied in with our mountain bike race.”
