Albany officials debate repurposing 3 Oaks Pond; board asks staff to prioritize stormwater projects

City staff on Oct. 9 presented a plan to grade and pipe 3 Oaks Pond (located at Pheasant and Meadowlark) so the roughly 1.5-acre detention pond could be repurposed as a passive community park. Staff said runoff that previously overloaded the pond was diverted to Lake Cornelia, and Lanier Engineering prepared a design that would extend pipe and backfill ditches to create a more usable community area.

Several board members questioned whether stormwater funds should pay for what they described as a recreation amenity, noting that nearby neighborhoods still have unresolved flooding problems (including Valencia and South Madison) and that the optics of using stormwater money for parks could be problematic. “I’m not gonna vote for this,” one commissioner said, expressing opposition to spending stormwater funds on recreation while other drainage issues remain unaddressed.

Staff acknowledged the concerns and agreed to pull the item, return with a prioritization of stormwater projects, and provide the board with an update on available funding and project stages. Staff also noted other planned stormwater projects — Shannon Pond, Valencia, Allison and Madison, and Old Dawson/North Doublegate — and said they would present timing and funding information to guide prioritization.

Board members asked staff to clarify which projects are funded, which are in design, and which require additional allocations before raising this matter again with the city commission.

Outcome: Item pulled for further prioritization and for staff to provide a clearer funding and schedule briefing to the board and commission.