City moves $5M parks bond forward
Apr. 20—The Meridian City Council on Tuesday took the next step in issuing $5 million in bonds to pay for repairs and upgrades to the city's parks and recreational facilities.
Tray Hairston of Butler Snow LLP, who has assisted the city with previous bond issues, said the council's action was to approve a "no protest resolution." The resolution, he said, states the notice of intent to issue the bonds had published three times in the newspaper as required by law, and no written protests against the bond had been made.
The next step in the bond process will be for Butler Snow to begin talks with banks about interest rates and repayment terms. Hairston said he and his team had already notified banks that the bond issue was likely to proceed, so there shouldn't be too much delay.
Hairston said Meridian Chief Financial Officer Brandye Latimer has been very helpful in getting the necessary financial information together, and Parks and Recreation Director Thomas Adams has likewise been a great help providing a detailed list of the projects planned for the funds.
The parks overhaul calls for fresh asphalt at Northeast, Sammy Davidson and Jaycee Soccer complexes, Phil Hardin, Q.V. Sykes and Highland Parks as well as the Lakeview Golf Course cart trail. Paving costs are estimated at more than $1 million.
Additionally, the city plans to install turf infields at Q.V. Sykes and Phil Hardin parks, resurface tennis courts and build pickleball courts at Northeast and Sammy Davidson complexes, install playgrounds at Sammie Davidson and Jaycee Soccer complexes and more. Additional upgrades for splash pads, pool upgrades and repairs at the golf course are also included in the plan.
The planned upgrades and repairs are estimated to cost about $2.25 million.
Also in the parks bond is $1 million set aside to rebuild the Frank Cochran Community Center at Highland Park. The center, which was a popular rental venue, was damaged in a fire in 2019. The city has contracted with Davis Purdy Architects to design a new community center to be built in its place.Barring unforeseen delays, Hairston said the council can expect to hear what interest rates banks quoted at its May 16 meeting. If the rates are acceptable, he said the city can expect to receive the money before the end of June.
In other parks business, Ed Skipper, who serves as administrative assistant to Mayor Jimmie Smith, said discussions are still ongoing as to repairs to parks and recreation facilities suffered from March storms. The storms downed trees and power poles throughout the city, including at several city parks.
Skipper said the city is evaluating the damage to see what will meet the city's insurance deductible and discussing the best use for $144,000 available in disaster recovery funds under the Department of Public Safety.
Once a plan has been developed, Skipper said he would let the council know.
Contact Thomas Howard on Twitter @tmhoward
