Butler County commissioners on Wednesday, Feb. 26, approved an agreement with Butler to upgrade the Emily Brittain Elementary School playground and use it as a public park.

The agreement calls for replacing and redeveloping the playground into a community park that will be open to the public during nonschool hours. The school is located between North Washington and North Bluff streets.

Butler City Council must approve the agreement for the project to advance.

Lance Welliver, county parks and recreation director, said the work at the playground will include developing a playground area for children 5 to 12 years old, installing a safety surface, landscaping, creating access for people with disabilities and other site improvements. He said the goal is to complete the project by the end of fall.

In another park project, the commissioners approved an agreement to administer grant funding for construction of a paved walking trail for people with disabilities at Ash Stop Community Park in Forward Township.

The trail will connect to the existing half-mile Mary McElhinny walking trail that parallels Connoquenessing Creek. The project includes access and parking spaces for people with disabilities, landscaping, trash cans, benches and other site improvements, Welliver said.

To pay for the project, the township received a $216,100 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ Community Conservation Partnership program and provided an equal match.

The Butler and Forward Township projects were recommended by the county parks advisory commission.

In addition, the commissioners agreed to apply for an $80,000 grant from the DCNR to revise and update the county’s comprehensive recreation, park and open space plan and greenways and trails plan. If the application is approved, the county would provide an equal match of the grant.

The updated and revised plan would be used for the county parks and recreation system and as a planning guide by all 57 municipalities in the county, and allow municipalities to seek grants for planning, acquisition, rehabilitation and development, Welliver said.

In advance of an announcement planned for March, the Pennsylvania Parks and Recreation Society has named the county parks and recreation department as the “Agency of the Year,” said Leslie Osche, commissioners chairwoman.

Welliver will be presented with the award at a dinner.

“The PRPS Agency of the Year Award inspires and recognizes exemplary accomplishments in positioning parks and recreation as an essential public service with meaningful community impact. The winning agency provides a fresh perspective on significant parks and recreation issues, shows innovation and collaboration, and has demonstrated a high level of resourcefulness, especially in recent years,” according to the society.