Winnsboro approves $12,900 EDC grant as Rotary Club seeks $20,000 for park cover

The Winnsboro City Council voted to approve a $12,900 Economic Development Corporation (EDC) expenditure to support improvements at Rotary Park, and heard a request from Rotary Club representatives for an additional $20,000 from the city to finish an all-weather cover and related site work.

The EDC allocation was approved during the meeting after Rotary Club volunteers described the project and its phases. Councilmembers said they support the concept but repeatedly asked for precise costs, documentation of funds already raised, and clarification on maintenance responsibilities before approving any municipal contribution.

At the meeting, Jennifer Heitman, identifying herself as a Rotary Club representative, said the Rotary Club led the park's original build and had done fundraising and grant work. “We do a fundraiser every year. We do some teacher give backs. We gave almost $8,000 for the Winnsboro Disc Park,” Heitman said, describing Rotary’s past contributions and the club’s role in funding phases of Rotary Park.

Carly Holland, who gave her address on the record, described user experience in summer heat: “If you've been to the park in the summertime, it's unbearable. There is no shade whatsoever,” she said, urging a cover so families would use the park more often and spend more in town. Cason Ragsdale said Rotary and partners had already purchased steel for the cover and had split the work into phases; he told the council the club had asked Wood County Electric for a matching grant of about $13,000 and that the EDC had approved $12,900.

Councilmembers said the council lacks a parks department and that ongoing maintenance falls to city maintenance staff. A councilmember (unnamed) said they were reluctant to approve $20,000 in city funds without evidence the Rotary Club had been saving or otherwise committing matching funds for upkeep over the last several years: “My only thing is if I'm gonna ask for $20,000, I'm gonna show up here and say that I've raised $15,000 over the last 5 years,” the councilmember said, urging documentation of Rotary fundraising and a clear maintenance plan.

Council discussion also covered timing and procedure. Staff and council said the cover and any city contribution must be posted as an action item at least 72 hours before a meeting for the council to vote. Councilmembers suggested Rotary return with a line-item cost estimate (including steel cost already spent, concrete, labor, and mulch), the results of pending grant applications, and a clear timetable so the council could consider a city contribution at the next meeting.

Decision and next steps: Council approved the EDC expenditure of $12,900. The Rotary Club request for $20,000 from the city was discussed but not approved; councilmembers asked Rotary representatives to provide a precise cost breakdown, documentation of funds already raised, and the status of outside grants so the item could be posted as an action item at a future meeting.

For transparency: the EDC portion ($12,900) was taken to a vote and carried with the meeting record showing unanimous voice approval; there was no roll-call vote recorded in the transcript for the EDC expenditure. The council did not vote to commit the city to the additional $20,000 and directed staff and the Rotary Club to return with detailed figures for possible action at the next meeting.