City begins McNoble Harper Park upgrades

By Bobby Horn Jr.
news@casscountynow.com

An Atlanta park will be getting a facelift thanks to a joined city/ state project.
In 2014 the city applied for a matching grant for upgrades at the McNoble Harper Park. The park, located on the northeast side of the city, is bordered by Polk, Melrose and Hodge Streets.
The grant is part of a program created by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to help cities improve their parks. The grant is a 50-50 match fund, where the city has to agree to match the state funds, which will be paid over a three-year period.
Upgrades at the park include a sand volleyball court, walking trails, new lighting, a butterfly garden and new playground equipment, said Mayor Keith Crow.
When the city first applied for the grant, City Manager David Cockrell said, there was not a 100 percent guarantee that the city would receive the funds. Whether or not the city got the state funds, Cockrell said at the time, the volleyball court was the first priority, with the playground equipment coming next. The walking trails were contingent on the state funds. Now, however, they will be able to complete the full scope of the plans.
Crow said that if the weather holds out they are hopeful to have the upgrades completed this summer.
In submitting their application the city had to demonstrate that the equipment that they will use meets the American With Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design. The 1990 law not only specifies how playground equipment is designed and how it is accessed by users but designates a ratio of “ground-play components” such as swings, rockers and sandboxes vs. elevated play (commonly referred to as hamster parks).
Cockrell said that improvements at McNoble Harper Park are part of the Comprehensive Parks Plan the city council approved in 2011.
This is not the only upgrades happening at city parks this summer.
The city is also spending $537,000 to resurface the parking lot at the baseball and softball fields which border Holly Street and Lindsey Lane.