Park upgrades could include a new dog park at Chuck Roberts Park, recycling of water at city splash pad and development of Suncrest Park

By Tony Boom for the Rogue Valley Times

Creation of a foundation to benefit parks development and renovation in Talent will be the top priority for the city’s Parks Commission in the new year.

“It’s definitely our top priority in the next year, to get it started. Whether that’s commission members or others that take the lead needs to be determined,” said Ted Hilton-Walker, chair of the commission. A study session with the City Council was held on Dec. 3.

A 2020 Parks Master Plan called for a number of improvements in existing parks and development of land the city has set aside for future parks. The plan called for $3,838,000 in parks expenditures over a 10-year period. Currently, the city has about $580,000 set aside for parks improvements. A foundation could help raise funds to cover some of the expenses.

Talent Mayor Darby Ayers-Flood said she is excited about the prospect and the abilities of a foundation to raise funds for both programs and improvements. She served on the Medford Parks and Recreation Committee for two years over a decade ago.

“It’s such an asset to parks and to have the ability to fund recreation programs and capital improvements for a small town with a limited budget,” Ayers-Flood said. “It’s such a smart move.”

A foundation would have more flexibility in raising and spending money than a city government would, Ayers-Flood said. A foundation isn’t required to follow some of the regulations required of municipal government, she noted.

Parks commissioners have been discussing the prospect for nine months. They have held several public meetings and also conferred with Brian Sjothun, former parks and recreation director for Medford who was active with that town’s foundation.

People with experience in 501(c)(3) charitable organizations showed up at meetings and some offered pro-bono help to get a foundation created, Hilton-Walker said.

Placing the foundation under the umbrella of another organization, under the city or as a standalone were considered, Hilton-Walker said. “We have come to the conclusion that a stand-alone would be the best.”

“One thing that we collectively want to be through about is how the governance of any foundation is set up, so it is truly independent as a legal entity, but also making it in alignment with the city,” said Alex Campbell, Talent city manager.

“We talked about both staff and potentially commission members participating in the foundation to maintain that good line of communication,” Campbell said.

In Medford, both the Parks and Recreation Department director and a parks commission member serve on the foundation board. A similar arrangement is being explored for the Talent foundation.

Park upgrades

A new foundation might play a role in helping fund parks upgrades. Upgrades to Chuck Roberts Park were put at $1.28 million in 2020.

Upgrades to Lynn Newbry Park were listed at $359,000, while development of Suncrest Park was listed at $1,482 million. Another $714,000 in upgrades for other parks was also identified.

Improvements to 12.4-acre Chuck Roberts Park identified in a 2024 amendment to the master plan will be a major emphasis for the city and the commission over the next several years, city officials said. The amendment is to accommodate new pickleball and tennis courts and an additional dog park on the north side.

A double tennis courts that can accommodate pickleball in the northeastern corner of Chuck Roberts is currently closed due to hazardous conditions. The court is located on soft ground that sinks, causing the surface to crack.

Creation of a park for large dogs is shown in the plan amendment. The current park, a half-acre next to the Police Department on Talent Avenue, is seen by some as too small for larger dogs, Hilton-Walker said. A park for large dogs would be located between the sand volleyball court and the Little League fields, as would the ball courts.

Another Chuck Roberts upgrade is installation of a water recycling system for the splash pad located near Talent Avenue. About $350,000 is earmarked in a capital improvements project fund for updating Chuck Roberts.

Campbell was scheduled to meet recently with the public works director and a consultant they have worked with in the past on parks grants applications to discuss the next Oregon Parks and Recreation Department’s large grant cycle, with applications due in the spring.

Any state grant would require a 50% match. Another $230,000 generated from system development funds is in the parks budget. A use for that money had not been determined, Campbell said.

“Suncrest is probably a fairly distant effort, but hopefully something can be found to help kick-start that campaign,” Hilton-Walker said.

The 19.5-acre site is located along Bear Creek. It would be developed in two phases. Both Hilton-Walker and Ayers-Flood want to bring back recreation programs.

Around 2005, the police department was voicing concerns about youth drug activities in city parks, said Ayers-Flood, who served on the parks commission then. Commissioners sought grants and raised funds for a recreation program.

“It did make a difference,” the mayor said. “It provided kids with healthy alternatives.”

Recreation programs began to wane even before the pandemic. Now there are none run by the city, although outside organizations offer some.

One major park upgrade has already occurred. The Old Town Skate Park reopened in October after a $600,000 rebuild of the 1990 facility. The work was funded by a $315,000 grant from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. The remainder came from the city parks capital funds and the federal American Rescue Plan Act.

Reach Ashland freelance writer Tony Boom at [email protected]. This story first appeared in the Rogue Valley Times.