City presents McGill Park Phase 2B plan: large multipurpose field, playground, stream restoration and $600,000 state grant

City staff presented 90%-complete plans on Aug. 4 for McGill Park Phase 2B, which would add a large multipurpose athletic field, playground, shelter house with restrooms, trails and a stream-restoration element designed to improve drainage and open space usability. The plan shown to council includes one large outfield currently shown at 300 feet with staff indicating they intend to push the layout to a 375-foot outfield (the larger adult/softball size) while keeping the infield sized to accommodate 90-foot bases. Staff said the layout minimizes outfield fencing (no continuous outfield fences are planned) to increase multipurpose use and allow portable mounds and base-lug anchors for different age groups. The project includes a shelter house with restrooms, an adjacent playground designed to match the park's existing natural theme, and new amenities such as bocce and cornhole courts, a drinking fountain/bottle-filler/dog bowl station, and parking sized for full build-out. Staff said the design includes stream-corridor restoration and rechannelization to remove a local high spot and improve flow; that work will require a nationwide permit and will be among the key permitting tasks before construction. Finance and scheduling notes: staff cited an initial estimate of about $3.5 million for project build-out. City staff said they have secured a $600,000 state grant for the project but noted the grant carries a spending deadline (staff stated the grant must be spent by a July 1 deadline referenced in the meeting). Staff said they were awaiting final numbers and that the city would decide soon whether to use cash or bonding for the balance. Staff also said the historic McGill House on the park parcel will be rehabilitated and used for park office/storage and construction staging during the project; the building had previously been assessed and determined to have a sound foundation. Park staff said trail alignment will cross floodplain areas with mounded trail alignments and crossings similar to regional practice and that paved trails in floodways are not unusual where they are designed to accommodate periodic inundation. Councilors asked about tournament usability, climbing structures, water fountains and grant timing. Staff said the planned field could host adult softball and travel-league games once adjusted to the larger outfield dimension and that the infield/foundation work to add dugouts and backstops is a comparatively low-cost add-on. Staff noted the biggest remaining permitting hurdle is the nationwide permit for the stream restoration and that the project must respect time constraints tied to the state grant. Staff urged a prompt decision about funding approach because part of the grant must be expended within the stated deadline; they expected to finalize construction contracting and scheduling after design completion and permitting.