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Opelika outlines major West Ridge Park upgrades, including new playground and $1M in field lighting
Summary
City staff detailed a range of completed and planned West Ridge Park improvements — from infield grading and new scoreboards to a $262,000 playground and roughly $1 million in field lighting — and said additional accessibility and landscaping work will follow.
John, a city staff presenter, told the council the city has completed and is finishing a broad set of improvements at West Ridge Park carried out over the last 12–18 months. "The renovations to the fields…infield grading, mounds and bases," he said, cost about $48,000, and "the fencing project" about $85,000. He listed other work by item and approximate cost: hydroseeding $60,000; asphalt and playground removal and grading $15,000; ADA sidewalks and concrete near the new playground $120,000; tree work $50,000; security cameras about $125,000; new scoreboards $42,000 and controls $9,000; new field lighting roughly $1,000,000; Miracle League surfacing materials $153,000 with installation $95,000; Miracle League fencing $14,000; new playground equipment $262,000 and its installation $245,000.
John said a partially ADA-accessible playground installation would begin the next day and that staff were preparing additional amenities — benches, shade structures, picnic tables, irrigation, parking-lot resealing and an aesthetics master plan to guide future landscaping and connectivity work. "We've got a few other things planned…shade structures, benches, trash cans, picnic tables," he said, and noted bids and design work remain for several projects including irrigation and parking reseal.
Council members responded with praise and asked for communications support to highlight the improvements to residents and park users before the little-league season. One member suggested producing a short social media reel so residents know "we've listened and we're doing stuff," and John said he would answer follow-up questions.
The presentation provided cost estimates for completed and planned items; council did not take a formal vote on park funding at this meeting and no new appropriations were approved during the session. The city indicated staff will return with procurement steps and bids as projects proceed.
