Skate park the talk of City Council
A handful of people attended the Butler City Council meeting Thursday to discuss the condition of Father Marinaro Skate Park and their hopes for its future.
Ken Clowes, who has done volunteer work at the park, said he would like to organize improvements there because it is used by many people and it could benefit many more. He asked if a group could present projects it would like to see at the park, and asked if the city could turn the lights on at the park once again.
Clowes, assistant at the Butler County Community College Community Initiatives Center, has led volunteer efforts to renovate and repair the skate park.
“Skateboarding is enjoying its height of popularity right now, and I don’t think it’s going back down,” Clowes said. “It has always been a place for maybe some kids who don’t fit in to traditional high school sports to find a place to call their own.”
Other residents said they have wanted to make renovations at the skate park for years — several of which have happened — but they want to build it up with new equipment and ramps.
Councilman Don Shearer said the city has a separate bank account that everything related to the skate park has to go through in order to keep track of money for audits.
“If there is money being spent on the parks, we know it’s not tax dollars,” Shearer said. “If you have a big grand idea, say, we want to put in and do all new fixtures ... and the Butler Redevelopment Authority might be able to get a grant, you guys could be saving money in that account to get the matching portion of that grant.”
Mayor Bob Dandoy implored those attending to contact him to further discuss improvements they would like to see at the skate park, because, as he told them, he is no skater.
Council approved a request for a skating competition at the park from noon until 9 p.m. Aug. 6.
The Butler Area Public Library is getting more than $45,000 worth of improvements.
Council voted to accept bids to install new flooring, automated doors and electrical systems at the library, which will be paid for by the Keystone Grant.
Dandoy said the library determined its needs, and the city applied for the grant on its behalf.
The library’s executive director, Lori Hinderliter, said in March that the grant will make the library more comfortable.
“We want to replace the flooring in our meeting room and carpet in our children's room so it's safer for patrons to come in,” Hinderliter said.
Additionally, council will advertise for bids for a four-wheel drive pickup to replace a rescue vehicle for the Bureau of Fire. The truck will be paid for by a Community Development Block Grant, and the city will announce the application amount once bids are received.
The Butler Redevelopment Authority will apply for $1.4 million through the Community Development Block Grant’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, which council voted to authorize.
Veronica Walker, executive director of the authority, said last week that in conversations with a block grant representative that she learned that the money — which is meant to be used for improvements to prevent, prepare for and respond to coronavirus — could apply to recreation projects. The representative told her that city parks fall within funding guidelines “because (of) outside air and social distancing,” Walker said Thursday.
The authority will apply for the funding on behalf of the city to work on five projects.
Dandoy also said the city has applied for a grant to replace the traffic signals at the intersection of Cunningham and Pillow streets. The project will cost around $340,000. The city’s match would be $10,000.
City code official John Evans said the city has applied three times for money to fix the intersection.
“It will bring it all up to today’s standards,” Evans said. “Right now it has eight-inch heads, the traffic signals, they are required to be 12 inches.”
