“Crawford Woods and Millikin Woods are some of our larger parks (and) are in pretty bad shape,” Timmer said. More than $900,000 of the capital funds are budgeted toward construction for a splashground and shelter and restroom renovations at each location, with Crawford Woods’ splashground to tentatively open by the Fourth of July and Millikin Woods’ construction to begin in late 2015 or early 2016.
Crawford Woods Elementary Principal Aaron Hopkins said that since the elementary school was opened in 2010, he has heard many parents and families lament the removal of the community pool in the East End.
“They all have very positive memories of spending time at the pool, and it will be really neat to see our kids of this generation get that same type of community,” he said.
Millikin Woods also has three fire-damaged shelters that need to be replaced within the year.
“We’re going to be redoing a lot of the restrooms, doors that are falling apart, and getting rid of 172 dead trees,” Timmer said. Most of the dead trees around Hamilton’s parks have already been removed, with about 50 still remaining in Millikin Woods, he said.
Former City Manager Jack Kirsch lives close to Millikin Woods in the West Park community, and said he remembers his family using the park often when he was younger.
“My wife Edith used to walk in it every day, it was a great park,” he said, adding that over the years people began to use it as a meeting ground for drug deals and other illegal activities and the park’s quality began to decline.
“But when they put the roadway and other improvements through there, it started becoming a nice place again,” he said.
Other parks seeing significant improvements this year include Jim Grimm Park, formerly known as the Wilson Pool Park, and Officer Bob Gentry Park in Lindenwald. The Hamilton Community Foundation approved a $64,500 grant at their last board meeting to create a playground structure at Jim Grimm Park on Cleveland Avenue, and Officer Bob Gentry Park on Williams Avenue will see brand new tennis courts.
The conservancy also anticipates creating a master plan for improvements to the North End ball field and playground on Joe Nuxhall Boulevard, though no particular improvements have been determined yet.
“The layout wasn’t well planned out before,” Timmer said. “Back in the day, they’d stick a playground here and something there, and you think, if that wasn’t there, we could have made it a better park. So we just want to be better planned for future amenities.”
Each park in the city will have some amount of work done this year though, Timmer said, even if it’s just grass cutting and graffiti cleaning.
“Probably no park will go untouched, but the larger objects will be phased in over several years,” he said.
Under the five-year agreement unanimously approved by council members, the city of Hamilton will contribute $1.1 million annually to pay for the general operations and upkeep of the parks, and provide a one-time contribution of $1.25 million paid for via the general fund, that will be paid for over the course of the next five years with all interest — $25,000 — paid in 2015 and $95,000 paid per year through 2019. After that contribution, the nonprofit is responsible for all additional capital raised.
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