Yakima staff outlines repairs, grants and needs for District 1 parks

Ken, a Parks and Recreation Department staff member, gave the Parks and Recreation Commission a district-by-district overview Wednesday of park properties and maintenance needs in District 1 (Northeast Yakima).

The presentation covered Miller Park, McGinnis Park, Cherry Park, Millroy Park, the Natchez Parkway, the Walter Ortman Parkway and the Powerhouse Canal Pathway. Ken said Miller Park’s renovation coincided with the park’s 100th anniversary and that the city received a state grant of $600,000 to help fund work there. He also said Millennium Foundation donated what staff described as “over a $50,000” contribution for community mosaics created by Titan Mosaics.

“I still think it’s great that we were able to do the renovation of Miller Park at the 100 year anniversary of that park,” Ken said. He added that the park’s spray play feature is about 20 years old and staff cannot obtain replacement parts for some components. “We are hoping to be able to renovate that this spring, which means new parts, new components, new controls,” Ken said, noting the spray park is heavily used by the neighborhood and the summer playground program.

Staff identified several other capital needs in District 1: McGinnis and Elks Park playgrounds are aging and on the replacement list; Cherry Park will be near its 100th year and staff has discussed adding a half-court basketball court and improved lighting; Millroy Park needs parking-lot repairs and has playground equipment that dates to 2001. Ken said replacing a playground “right now… I don't think we could do it for even a smaller one for less than a hundred and $50,000,” and that the department looks for grants and community donors to help cover construction costs. He described how playground manufacturers sometimes supervise “community builds” that combine staff and volunteer labor to reduce construction costs.

Staff also flagged recurring vandalism to irrigation heads along Natchez Parkway and the high cost of removing and replacing aging parkway trees. The Walter Ortman Parkway—north of McGinnis Park—received a Yakima Valley Conference of Governments grant to install a walkway, Ken said; that pathway connects the Powerhouse Canal Pathway to the William O. Douglas Trail.

Commissioners asked about tree replacement, vandalism tracking and how the department obtains budgetary estimates. Ken said maintenance logs and invoices indicate vandalism is recorded on repairs and that the department requests informal budgetary quotes from local contractors when planning future projects.

The presentation included high-level cost and revenue estimates for individual parks (the packet described some figures as estimates that will be updated). Staff said total capital contributions to Miller Park and other projects since the early 2000s approach $1.1 million and emphasized the department will continue seeking donors and grants for major work.

The commission did not take an action vote on specific capital projects at the meeting; staff said projects would be advanced through future budget and grant processes.