Oxford Township Parks and Recreation is one step closer to adding another 14 acres to Seymour Lake Township Park to expand its soccer facilities and parking.
The township board voted unanimously April 27 to authorize the purchase of 14 acres of land bordering the park on the east side, west of Coats Road, for $225,000 plus development costs.
‘I’m all in favor of this move,? said Pat Fitchena, noting it’s the ‘best choice? for the property. ‘I think it adds to Seymour Lake Park. I think it adds to the community.?
However, officials noted in their motion that the financing option selected by the parks and recreation commission to carry out this purchase cannot exceed the department’s voter-approved operating millage, which expires in December 2009.
On April 11, the parks and recreation commission voted unanimously to purchase nine acres from Roy Harris and an adjacent five acres to the south from Thomas Patch for $16,071.42 per acre. The price is based on a certified state appraisal.
‘I think we have a unique opportunity to purchase a piece of property that if it’s not taken by us, it’s going to be developed and we’ll never get it back,? said Parks and Rec. Director Ron Davis to township officials.
Davis said 11 to 13 acres would be used to provide additional soccer field facilities while at least one acre would be used to provide more parking.
Currently, the 500-plus players involved in the parks and rec. youth soccer program have two fields to play on at Seymour Lake ? one paid for by a state grant; the other donated by local developer Greg Christopher.
During the week, the 500-plus soccer players can only use the fields for practice on Tuesday and Thursday because the baseball fields occupying the same area are used Monday, Wednesday and Friday, according to Davis.
To pay for this $225,000 purchase, Davis presented township officials with three possible loan payment schedules from Oxford Bank (5 years, 15 years and 20 years) with annual payments ranging from $17,701 to $50,767.
Although the parks and rec. department currently has a fund balance of roughly $150,000, Davis said it was decided to take out a loan because ‘we didn’t want to drain our fund equity back to less than 10 percent of our budget if we could help it.?
Township officials expressed concern over having a loan extend beyond the existing voter-approved operating millage for parks and rec. Because the township would be the titleholder on the land, it would ultimately be responsible for the loan should parks and rec. be unable to continue paying.
As a result, Treasurer Joe Ferrari crafted a motion stating that whatever financing option is selected, it cannot be longer than the current operating millage.
Trustee Sue Bellairs asked Davis where the ‘extra? money is going to come from to pay off this loan.
Davis said funds can be drawn from the approximately $26,000 per year that’s earmarked for capital outlay (i.e. purchasing new trucks, tractors, playground equipment, etc.) and the ‘contingency line item,? which pays for things like repairing the approximately $25,000 per year in vandalism sustained by the parks system.
The director also noted the current operating millage brought in ‘around $60,000 more? in revenue thanks to local growth. ‘We’re going to have to make some adjustments within our budget, but I wouldn’t stand before you if I wasn’t comfortable saying we can make this thing work,? Davis said. ‘I assure you we’ll find that (money) in our budget to make the first payment and then adjust it for the following four years.?
As the soccer program continues to grow, Davis noted Seymour Lake Park will ‘be able to accommodate more teams and have more facility rentals ? all that’s going to offset those costs.?
‘But we can’t do more programming unless we have the facilities to provide those opportunities,? he said.
Because the property to be purchased is ‘flat? and contains alfalfa, it will take less than 30 minutes to mow and therefore won’t require the hiring of any additional maintenance workers.
Supervisor Dunn said that although he supports the parks department and this proposed land purchase, he wants to make sure existing park land, such as the 300-acre property on Oakwood Road, is developed.
‘There’s a lot of park land out there that hasn’t been developed,? Dunn said. ‘I’m all for the purchase, but I just want to keep it in the back of your mind that we have other work to do out there.?
Davis noted the department spent $12,000 this year on an engineering plan for the Oakwood Road park property. ‘We’re ready to roll on that,? he said. ‘Our goal is to put a road in this year and a parking lot.?
Even if the 14-acre parcel in question can’t be developed immediately, Davis said it’s important to obtain it now. ‘If we get this 14 acres and it takes up to five years to get it up and running for kids, fine and dandy,? he said. ‘But if we don’t get it now, it’s not going to be available five years from now. I wouldn’t envision it taking that long, I’m just saying the key is to get the property.?
As part of the purchase, Davis said the parks and rec. department would pay, only if a special meeting is required, for rezoning the land to recreational use and splitting it from Patch’s remaining 10 acres and Harris? remaining five acres.
Parks and rec. will also pay, only if a special meeting is required, for the possible splitting of Harris? remaining five acres into two 2?-acre parcels. This would require a rezoning of the property from Suburban Farms 2 (SF-2), five-acre minimum lots, to Suburban Farms 1 (SF-1), minimum lot sizes of 2? acres.
Davis said the nine-acre land sale is contingent on the planning commission granting Harris? rezoning request for his remaining five acres. Fitchena noted that twice before Harris has been denied requests to rezone his property to single family residential (R-1) lots.
‘I would hope the planning commission sees the importance of this and understands the valuable asset it is to the township,? Davis noted.