The Parkville Board of Aldermen discussed moving ahead with parks master planning projects during another virtual meeting of the board last week.
Director of public works Alysen Abel updated the board on the creation of a master plan for the downtown pocket park, which currently houses the statue of Bill Grigsby. The city retained VBN Architects to facilitate the master planning process and draft the plan.
A stakeholder committee was also formed, made up of 15 members including adjacent property owners and representatives from various community organizations including the Community Land and Recreation Board (CLARB) and Main Street Parkville Organization (MSPA) as well as city officials and Community Improvement District (CID) board members. That committee held its first meeting on June 24.
The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 21 with VBN representatives expected to present two possible models to the committee members. Future meetings to present the options to CLARB, MSPA and other interested groups will also be scheduled.
A shared work session with the board of aldermen and CLARB is set for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 4.
Similar master planning sessions are also in the works for Adams and Watkins neighborhood parks. The city retained Vireo to seek community input in plans for these two parks.
Watkins Park, located off Main Street near the historic Banneker School, is named for Kansas Citian Bruce Watkins. Aldermen suggested partnering with the foundation for the historic African American school to install informational plaques in the park.
Adams Park, located at 13th and Walnut streets, is also on the roster for master planning.