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Board approves phase-1 plan design for Rose Street ball fields; survey authorized after debate over site use
Summary
The Alleghany County Board approved Phase 1 plan design to build two ball fields on Board of Education property near Rose Street and separately authorized a survey; commissioners debated use of Veterans Park versus school property and requested a revised MOU clarifying school and public use (vote on plan design 4-1).
The Alleghany County Board of Commissioners voted to advance plan design for a phased ball-field project on property adjacent to Rose Street that is owned by the local Board of Education, approving the Phase 1 design (two fields) with a 4-1 recorded vote and separately authorizing a property survey to enable potential lien releases and property exchanges.
Commissioner Jackson Wagon summarized a multimonth recreation-committee process and said the committee recommended the Rose Street school site as the preferred location for Phase 1. Wagon told the board the choice followed prior meetings in February, March, May and a work session on Aug. 19 where the Park/Rec group identified the Rose Street site as the preferred construction location.
Several commissioners questioned whether county-owned options such as Veterans Park or a bus-garage site had been fully explored. Commissioners raised concerns about drainage and future expansion: Veterans Park was described as in a floodplain and historically wet, while the Rose Street school property is already flat but may require grant and lien adjustments before work can proceed. One commissioner urged the board to examine multiple sites and better understand long-term expansion opportunities before locking a permanent site.
Board members noted available funding pieces for the project: a school-held grant of roughly $104,000, additional grants (roughly $270,000 noted in the presentation) and an April-submitted $20,000 grant; presenters said moving the location could risk losing some grant funding. The board discussed fencing and other construction costs that could push the total higher than those amounts; staff said final cost estimates will be known only after design and bidding.
Commissioners requested an updated memorandum of understanding between the county and the school system to define when fields would be available to the public versus school use, particularly during school-season overlaps. Trustees confirmed the MOU exists and would be revised; commissioners asked that MOU terms and public-access arrangements be returned in two weeks or at a mid-month meeting. The board also authorized a survey of the school-owned parcel so legal descriptions can be prepared and lien releases from Truist and state grant authorities can be sought.
The motion to proceed with Phase 1 plan design passed 4-1; the dissenting commissioner asked that the record show opposition limited to proceeding without clearer MOU details but expressed support for the overall project.
