Mancos plans to add pickleball and sandpit volleyball courts to its local park within the next few years as part of its master plan for recreation. The master plan includes a vision for the next 20 years.
“So, what we're doing is we’re embarking on, basically, a park renovation,” said Mancos Mayor Cindy Simpson. “We're going to be updating some things and moving some things around, and we’re looking for grant money, stuff like that.”
“We kind of plot it out like, ‘OK, over the next, you know, 20 years, this is what people want and what we think we can do, and we're just going to start working away at them and trying to make them happen,” Simpson said.
Town Administrator Heather Alvarez told The Journal that the project for renovations of Boyle Park is estimated to be $1.2 million, and they are working on receiving funding before moving forward.
“Today, we’re actively seeking funding, and then once we have that funding, we will move forward with the project,” Alvarez said. “It is the No. 1 priority of the town and trails master plan.”
Simpson said that while the park renovation is in its early stages, the “visioning session” started about a year ago, with over 120 participants.
“Lots of them were kids, so it was really cool,” Simpson said.
The new town vision statement included input for parks, entertainment and recreation services. Two of the most requested updates to Boyle Park, according to Simpson, were pickleball and sandpit volleyball courts.
“What we did was we advertised we were working on a new vision statement for the town. We got a lot of really wonderful input on what people want out of their parks. You know, what did they want in the parks? What did they want in terms of entertainment, recreational services, things like that,” Simpson said.
While it hasn’t been decided where the additions fall in the master plan, Simpson said it is possible they could break ground next year.
Two pickleball courts will be added, and Simpson said they are doing their best to place the courts in a location that will prevent noise disturbances to those who live in the vicinity of the park.
“Hopefully, where we’re putting it will impact the fewest people possible,” Simpson said. “We're trying to take that into consideration.”
Some of the other anticipated updates that are in the early planning stages are ADA sidewalks and ramps that will provide access to each park structure.
“Right now, the sidewalks don’t go to all of them,” Simpson said. “We’re going to do ADA ramps and have the sidewalks go to each of the structures, so that people can get around a little bit better.”
