Chesterton’s Park Board took the first step toward financing long-term capital improvement projects and received news about a grant award to replace the boardwalk at its Coffee Creek Park.
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The board on Tuesday unanimously approved a declaratory resolution, the first step in the process of obtaining a general obligation bond.
Town Attorney Connor Nolan said that one potential option is a bond that would raise $3 million to be repaid over a 15-year period.
The Park Board and Town Council will discuss and determine how much the bond would be over how many years.
Parks Superintendent Tyler McLead said they hope to settle on the terms of the agreement by the year’s end. Chesterton retired a $2 million bond this year that had helped to finance capital improvement projects.
Altogether, the town has identified $6.733 million in projects within the town’s park system as part of its five-year Parks Master Plan, which was certified in May by the state Department of Natural Resources.
McLead said the list is expansive, but will be narrowed down and prioritized as the town works through the process of obtaining the bond financing. He said the town will also look to pull from various funding sources to fund the projects.
Some of the major projects being considered include:
*Developing 27 acres donated to the town on Dickinson Road, which would include spending an estimated $1 million for a dog park.
*Building an inclusive playground that would accommodate disabled children at Chesterton Park. A new outdoor entertainment venue would also be developed as the two projects would cost around $1.25 million
*Renovating the brick paver pathways at the Thomas Centennial Park, which would cost an estimated $250,000.
*Developing a skate park at Dogwood Park, which is projected to cost around $425,000.
McLead told the board that it has been approved for a $200,000 federal grant from the Lake Michigan Coastal Program for the boardwalk project at Coffee Creek Park, which is on the list of future park projects.
The town will match the grant with $200,000 of its own funds, which would finance the reconstruction of 350 linear feet of boardwalk from the Coffee Creek Park to Lois Lane.
The project would also include building a new staircase from Lois Lane to the park.
Another facet of the project would be to remove the invasive species weeds and replace them with plants native to the region.
McLead and Town Attorney Nolan said there are some steps that need to be taken to finalize the grant. The project will be executed next year.
The Lake Michigan Coastal Program previously provided a grant that paid half of the $363,217.50 cost for the construction of three piers at the pond in Coffee Creek Park. There is also a limestone outcropping and a semicircular aggregate trail around the pond.
Chesterton has wanted to improve Coffee Creek Park, which runs behind Calumet Road, and its link with downtown.
Meanwhile, the project to renovate the bandstand at Thomas Centennial Park continues.
Trades department students from Chesterton High School are doing much of the woodwork for the bandstand. McLead said electrical work on the bandstand will also need to be done, as he hopes the project will be finished by the end of fall.
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Jim Woods is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.