By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Work progresses on just what improvements will be made to Krug Park with the $12 million designated toward it from the voter-approved park sales tax.
St. Joseph city officials held a public hearing last week to gather input.
Assistant Parks Director Jeff Atkins says nothing members of the public told officials really surprised them.
“But primarily I think the biggest concern, if we add them all together, I think people are just wanting to make sure that we take care of what’s there and preserve that the best we can,” Atkins tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post.
Atkins says most want the city to make sure Krug Park remains family-friendly, which is how Atkins envisions Krug Park.
“I just see the park being used as a place for families to gather,” Atkins says. “That’s kind of our goal for all our parks, even in the sports aspects of it; it’s families.”
The actual total the city has to spend on Krug is $13 million when money from the Capital Improvement Program sales tax is added.
Structural problems have emerged with the castle. The structural integrity of the tunnel, built in the 40s, needs to be evaluated.
“And, sadly, a lot of that money is going to be almost hidden money,” Atkins says. “We could theoretically go up there and spend $2 or $3 million on the castle and when we get done it might not look much different than it looks today.”
Yet, it appears that is what St. Joseph residents want. Atkins says citizens have told the city to make sure to take care of what St. Joseph has before considering additions.
“The money is going to be well spent, but it’s not all going to be spent on new shiny things,” Atkins says. “It just can’t. We can’t neglect what’s there just to get something new and shiny.”
Atkins says when he came up through the Parks Department maintenance crew, he saw first-hand the deterioration of Krug Park due to a lack of money.
“Finally having money to address that is just wonderful,” Atkins says. “And hopefully at the same time to, we will be able to, if we don’t put new things, hopefully we’ll be able to upgrade the current facilities enough that it will make a huge difference to the public.”
A consulting firm will present conceptual drawings at a meeting tentatively scheduled for September. Atkins says the city hopes to make a final presentation to the city council at the end of the year.
You can follow Brent on Twitter @GBrent, @680KFEQ, and @StJosephPost.