The following was edited by Columbia Missourian editor and reporter Scott Swafford. Click on the link to reach the original article. Photo credit goes to the Columbia Missourian.
Kristin Schwain and her daughter visit the quiet Again Street Park in west-central Columbia at least once a week or more.
So she was glad to learn on a recent afternoon at the park that the city plans to spend some money to fix it up.
Schwain sat beneath a tree scrolling through her cell phone Thursday afternoon while her daughter enjoyed running around the playground, which features climbing features and a slide.
“It’s a really inviting place,” Schwain said. “It seems a little unknown. It’s not really too crowded, which is nice. It’s a true neighborhood park, and we enjoy that.”
The 10-acre park at Again Street and Pershing Road is a quiet space nestled in the surrounding residential neighborhood and just west of West Boulevard Elementary School.
The Columbia Parks and Recreation Department on Oct. 5 won the City Council’s approval of a $100,000 plan to improve the park at Again Street and Pershing Road. Its plans include:
Resurfacing and restriping the full-size asphalt basketball court, which will bring it to “like-new condition,” according to a memo to the council.
A concrete walkway that will connect the court with a sidewalk along Pershing Road.
New playground equipment that will meet safety guidelines and be designed for 5- to 12-year-olds.
A new drinking fountain.
A disc golf basket requested by residents.
Drainage improvements and fence repairs at the baseball field.
The work will begin this fall and should be done by summer.
Public comments the city received were almost entirely positive, although several people asked that something be done about the bridge over the creek that becomes slippery when it’s damp.
Along with the playground and swings, it features a full-size basketball court and baseball field, but the field can get swampy after heavy rain.
Outdoor fitness equipment lines the park’s walkways, while oaks, maples, elms and bald cypress shade its open spaces and a creek that runs through it from north to south.
There’s a small shelter with picnic tables, and a couple more picnic tables in the shade near the creek.
A walking trail winds its way through much of the park.
Schwain said it’s always good to update parks with new equipment.
She says her daughter “loves to play here.
She loves the variety of equipment.”
“It’s nice that they also have swings for both young kids and older kids,” Schwain said. “They don’t always have that at all parks.”
Work on the park will be done both by contractors and staff in the Parks and Recreation Department.
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