City preparing for next phase of Depot Park renovations

Patrick Camp, The Cullman Times, Ala.
·3 min read

Jun. 28—With renovations to the existing Depot Park well under way, the Cullman City Council looked to continue the park's northward expansion by approving a grant proposal to fund the second phase of the project on Monday, June 26.

City officials first announced their intentions to give the park a near total makeover and extend its footprint to border the Cullman Police Department's office, on 2nd Ave. NE, in 2017.

Renovations began to improve the park's accessibility earlier this month, less than a week after Gov. Kay Ivey declared the city's annual Strawberry Festival an official statewide event. By relocating the park's fountain to Weiss Cottage and improving the sidewalks, Cullman Parks and Recreation and Sports Tourism Director Nathan Anderson said the current renovations aim to accommodate the heavy foot traffic and shore up parking during crowded events.

Those renovations are expected to be completed ahead of the annual Oktoberfest celebration, but the city is already preparing for the next wave of improvements. On Monday, the council approved an application for a $500,000 Appalachian Regional Commission grant.

Mayor Woody Jacobs said the grant would be used to cover the northern expansion of the park into the currently vacant area between the current park and the skate park. "Where the big dirt pile is now," he said.

CPRST is still working to finalize the exact plans for the new portion of the park, but Anderson described the next phase as a "natural grassy lawn area" which would provide a flexible footprint and allow the department to tailor each event's layout. Rather than standing out as a new portion of the park, the design will simply extend the renovated aesthetic of the existing area throughout the entire property. Anderson said the sidewalks will create a flowing walking path, while where the street is currently, will be incorporated into the design as a wide paved area for food trucks and vendors to set up during events.

He said the existing berm will also be elevated to reduce the amount of noise from passing trains and, while the department is still working on nailing down the exact features, the new area of the park is also planned to incorporate of number of playground features. Water and electrical services will also be lengthened and allow for easier stage set up during events.

Jacobs said, if received, the grant would require a $500,000 match from the City of Cullman either in-kind or cash. He said he is expecting a response to the application "sometime around October."

A more immediate course of action from the council was the decision to have Chapman Technical Services begin performing the annual inspections of the city's water towers. Cullman City Clerk Wes Moore informed the council prior to the meeting, during its work session, how the current inspections cost the city roughly $100,000 each year. CTS, who Moore said perform the service for 40 municipalities across the state, provided a quote of $13,000.

In other business the council:

* Granted Mansa Hospitality, dba Home2Suites, a beer and wine on premises alcohol license.

* Granted Opportunity Cullman, LLC, dba Cobblestone Hotel and Suites and Wissota Chophouse a restaurant alcohol license.

* Awarded the bid for water materials to Consolidated Pipe and Supply Co., Inc.