Midway parks committee backs planning grant for 50-acre gift as members weigh $600,000 rural grant for ice rink

The Midway Parks, Trails & Tree Committee voted on Jan. 27 to recommend that city staff apply for an outdoor recreation planning grant to develop concepts and public outreach for the roughly 50-acre property donated by Kim Gardner. The motion passed by voice vote after members discussed grant timing and competing capital needs.

The recommendation follows a lengthy budget discussion in which committee members weighed two near-term capital choices: finishing a permanent ice-skating building financed in part by an awarded rural community development grant, or directing limited funds toward two deteriorating boardwalk sections and multiple trail resurfacing projects. Committee members said the skating building has design work largely complete and that the rural grant carries a finite period for project completion; members said delaying the skating project risks forfeiting that grant award.

Why it matters: The outdoor recreation planning grant the committee endorsed would fund community outreach, concept drawings and consultant work to shape long-term proposals for the donated property. That concept stage is typically required before applying for construction grants for parks or trails. Separately, the rural community development grant cited in the meeting was described by members as roughly $600,000 and subject to a limited construction window; the committee discussed an approximate 28-month grant period remaining for that award as they weighed priorities.

Committee discussion focused on trade-offs. Members noted that replacing boardwalks over wetlands would be costly (members discussed higher up-front costs for durable composite materials like Trex, with longer expected life) but could provide decades of lower-maintenance service. Staff estimated large resurfacing work could cost on the order of tens of thousands of dollars for each major segment (members cited figures in the $75,000–$80,000 range for large resurfacing sections) and noted an annual trails budget of roughly $45,000 for routine maintenance.

A motion to recommend pursuit of the outdoor recreation planning grant for the Gardner property was made and seconded by committee members and approved by voice vote; the transcript records 'Aye' responses but does not show a formal roll-call tally. Committee members agreed the staff recommendation would be reported to the City Council for final direction and that staff should continue grant discussions with funding agencies.

The meeting closed with committee members asking staff to identify which trails are city-owned versus HOA or county-owned before committing funds, and to pursue letters of support and coordinated grant applications where possible.

Next steps: The committee will forward its recommendation to the City Council and continue follow-up with grant administrators and partner agencies about deadlines and allowable project scopes.