Norris readies parks with upgrades; should be done by end of April

New pavilion, walkways on horizon

April 3, 2024 by G. Chambers Williams III

Upgrades and other improvements to the parks in Norris, including a new pavilion in Oak Road Park and paved walkways in Ridgeway Park, should be completed by the end of April, City Manager Adam Ledford says.

A $41,000 project to replace the deteriorated pavilion at Oak Road Park has been underway for several weeks, and the new structure is up and nearly finished.

It’s been a complicated process because the old pavilion had only a dirt floor, while the new one is getting a concrete floor, and eventually will have new tables and benches. The new pavilion is about two feet longer and a foot wider than the one it replaced, the city manager said.

The playground equipment at Oak Road also has gotten new rubber material under it, replacing the previous wood chips, because the rubber is safer for kids when they fall on it, Ledford said.

“Oak Road is open, except for the pavilion, and the transfer from wood chips to rubber material is done,” he said. “Work on the pavilion is still going, but should be done by the end of the month.”

A delay in getting asphalt kept the new Ridgeway Park walkways from getting paved, but that also should be finished by the end of April, Ledford said.

In the meantime, the rest of the park is open for play, but the walkways are barricaded off, he said.

Eric Harold Memorial Park, near the Norris Community Building, also is back up and running after being closed for repair of some damage to the playground equipment, Ledford said.

Elsewhere in the city, wood cutting is underway in the Norris Watershed under a contract that allowed harvesting of some trees for lumber.

Beginning in mid-March, the section of Hi Point Trail from Upper Clear Creek Road to Lakeview Trail was be closed to all users, and is expected to remain so for up to two months.

The operation is being carried out on 23 acres along Hi Point Trail at the junction with Upper Clear Creek Road, according to an announcement from the Norris Municipal Watershed Board.

“There are two different types of harvest that are about evenly divided,” the announcement said. “The upper part is a clearcut operation that will take all of the merchantable trees, while the lower half is a shelterwood that will cut all but the oaks.

“On the entire area, all trees greater than one inch in diameter will be cut (except the shelterwood trees). The clearcut will let full sunlight reach the forest floor and allow the oak seedlings to compete with other species that can grow in shade, unlike the oaks.”



Also underway in Norris:

• Paving of Butternut Drive and Hickory Trail has begun, and should be finished “within the next few weeks,” Ledford said.

In September, the City Council approved a bid of $167,764 for the complete repaving of Butternut Drive and the first 2,200 feet of Hickory Trail from its intersection with Butternut.

The project does not include curbs, as the city had hoped. The contractor bid a surprising $600,000 to add curbs to the project, and that option was rejected by the council.

• More improvements are in the plans for the city’s parks. Norris has begun the process of applying for state recreation grants to help pay for an initial $750,000 in additions and upgrades to park and sports facilities under a plan approved by the City Council in February.

These new projects have been developed as part of a master plan for recreation that a city consultant has been working on for more than a year, and is still a work in progress.

Titled the “2024 City of Norris Sport Complex and Park Accessibility Project,” the initial projects would include “improvements and reconstruction of various elements of Eric Harold Park and adjacent recreational facilities,” including:

• Development and grading for the construction of a new sport complex.

• Construction of a multi-sport complex with spaces to play tennis, pickleball, and basketball.

• Lighting for the multi-sport complex.

• Refurbishment of the existing restroom structure allowing for two public restrooms (one ADA-compliant).

• Improvements to the pavilion at Eric Harold Park, including replacement of roof.

• Accessibility improvements to parking lots (including new striping and signage) at each facility, and construction of ADA-compliant walkways between and throughout each facility.

• New restrooms for the sport complex.

In addition to improvements to those facilities, the grant would address accessibility issues at the city’s other two parks, including the construction of ADA-compliant walkways and parking spaces.

The grant would come from a state grant program that provides money for such facilities, but with a 50% local match. The Norris plan as of now would spread out over five years, with the city spending $75,000 of its own funds each year.

Recreation facilities that would be scheduled for improvements, expansion or upgrades include Oak Road Park, Ridgeway Park, Eric Harold Memorial Park, the Norris Commons, Creamery Park, the city gymnasium in the Community Center, and the Disc Golf Course and tennis courts adjacent to the Community Building.

The tentative master plan was developed mostly from a community survey than was begun after the initial parks and recreation master plan workshop held in mid-2023.

More swimming facilities and water activities, and new or upgraded restrooms were among the top items people asked for in the survey.

People age 65-up were interested in more low-impact fitness options, and many respondents asked for a dog park.

Also mentioned as a high priority were additional basketball and pickleball courts, more programs for senior citizens and middle school students, and more non-athletic recreation programs.