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Architectural renderings of the Vidalia Recreation District No. 3 complex, at right, include ball fields, tennis and basketball courts and soccer fields. The complex will share city-owned land with the new municipal complex, center, and a city park, at far left.
Vidalia announces addition to recreation plans
Published Sunday, June 6, 2010
VIDALIA — The future Recreation District No. 3 complex will have a Vidalia city park facility to complement it.
Preliminary plans for a Vidalia city park adjacent to the future Recreation District No. 3 complex were shown at the recreation district’s monthly board meeting Wednesday.
The new park will be built in three phases, and will include small ballparks, a walking trail, a spray park and playground, picnic tables, a bocce ball court and eventually a community center, Vidalia Mayor Hyram Copeland said.
The 32-acre city park, which will be located behind and beside the new Vidalia City Municipal Complex, will back up against the recreation district’s new complex and will serve as a complement to it, Recreation District President Marc Archer said.
While the recreation district recently had a 40-year 3.89-mil tax renewal passed to fund their complex, Copeland said Vidalia will be paying for the new park through other means.
“We are paying for it, but we will be doing so through private grants and foundations,” he said.
Other things being considered include converting the bed of the former railroad tracks in Vidalia into a bicycle trail that will lead to the complex, Copeland said.
The proposed city park will only serve to enhance the recreation district’s plans, Archer said.
“It allows us to do other things with our complex without any further expense to the (recreation) board,” he said.
As for the recreation district’s plans, now that the funding has been secured through the tax renewal, Archer said the district has to come up with a wish list of what they want done at the complex so they can figure out what it will ultimately cost.
Those things might include netting rather than fencing above home plate on ball fields, sunken dugouts for the ball fields or the exact number of tennis courts the complex will have.
The wish list might also include having concession stands in the quads between the ball fields and bathrooms near the soccer fields and basketball courts, Archer said.
The recreation district’s engineer for the project, Bryant Hammett, said he would suggest moving forward with the plans that were presented at the public hearings for the tax renewal, and the district could go from there.
“We will rearrange and minimize the space we are going to use so that we will have the opportunity for expansion in the future,” Hammett said. “You never know what is going to be happening, what is going to be popular in six to eight to 10 years.”
Hammett will take the wish list to a recreation expert he will bring in for the project, and the two will work to draw up more detailed plans to show the board, Archer said.
Meetings with high school coaches about what is needed for baseball and softball fields will also be scheduled, he said.
“We need to get the basics so we can get the preliminary architectural reports, get the cost estimate, bid it out and build it,” Archer said. “I am ready to get this thing rolling. This is going to be the premier facility in the state, probably in a three-state area.”
Work on the district complex could begin as early as next June, Hammett said.
“I am thinking that we can break ground this time next year and have it ready for the 2012 season,” he said. “I see no impediment to that except changes, but that is why we want to get it honed down and get some specifics.”
The recreation district complex will be built on 50 acres that were purchased as part of an intergovernmental agreement between the City of Vidalia and the recreation district.
The city purchased 30 of the acres and the district bought 20, and the city leased the land to the district.
The land was purchased for $17,000 an acre.
Comments
Posted by bigbear603 (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 1:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
dear editor y is this news to the ndc(natchez dixie crap) what about all the shooting going on in fayette
Posted by Sarge (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 1:43 a.m. (Suggest removal)
What shootings? When?
Posted by monkeywillis2542 (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 2:21 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Seriously... What's wrong with the ball fields they have now? After this new "Complex" is build, the other will simply grow up. The same thing thats going to happen to the other city buildings when everything moves to the EDGE of the town. Mr. Mayor of Vidalia is only doing this to increase his property value, which ironically is located across from wal-mart!
Posted by sandra (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 8:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
isn't Natchez and Vidalia still right across the bridge from one another?
this is sorta like nashville building a new downtown convention center to compete with the Gaylord Opryland convention center(which, by the way was flooded last month by the corp of engineers, we now presume, rather than by nature). the 1,743 employees will be laid off june 12th , while out-side day-workers restore the property. (they should have used their own employees for clean-up and restoration). just another very large group of people in the unemployment line. oh, well?? back to Natchez and Vidalia and sport complexes. let's PLAY BALL. so much for floods, convention centers and jobs lost.
some people call it "tunnel-vision". i'm not buying into elected officials and ceo's being so incompetent that they would choose pleasure before work. have times changed, that much? the folks taught us and demanded of us, work before pleasure. we had to do our homework, pick up our toys, maybe empty the trash, wash the dishes and then go outside and play. no wonder our prisons are running over. if the minds at the top are bad what can we expect? you know the story, like mother, like daughter, and worse, like father, like son.
once again, i say, smooth sailing. better hope the food stamp program never runs out or you'll be stealing those basketballs and footballs and taking that pig meat home to throw on the grill rather than in the hoop.
Posted by mskitty (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 10:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
monkeywillis2542, you must be kidding me. The mayor is trying to improve Vidalia. You must be a very jealous person. There are four people that own that property and in todays economy to break even on the amount of money that was spent on that property will be good. The property has done nothing but cost them money. Where else would you suggest they put this park? There is no more land available in the town. Also, are you aware of the fact that he is not the only one making these plans. I love people that like to spot untruths. It makes life very interesting in this little town. Sounds like you have too much time on your hands, find something productive to do with your time, other than talk about others. God doesn't like ugly.
Posted by vidaliala336 (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 10:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Monkeywillis, the ballparks we have now are old, in the middle
of a neighborhood with limited parking, and not easily accessed. At the new complex you have easy access from the highway, plenty of parking and open space, and away from the neighborhood. Along with that you now have the capability of hosting tournaments in which out of towners will come here and spend money on food, hotel, shopping, instead of spending it somewhere else. Regardless of whether the mayor owns part of that land or not, he has done lots of good things for the city that had nothing to
do with that land and this complex will benefit everyone in the city. Vidalia - a city on the MOVE!
Posted by ntzalumni66 (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 11:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)
heard the other day at a fastpitch game that the old ball parks were going to be turned into apt. complex. sure hope vidalia thinks about that one. It would be sad if vidalia made that big of a mistake. why not leave them as a park or practice area. the new rec park is nice but more than one area is needed for families who live in different areas of your city. It is just so quite and nice back in there. heard that was donated to the rec board, why not leave it for park area since it isn't hurting anything?
Posted by vilou (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 12:48 p.m. (Suggest removal)
ntzalumni66, not true, people love to talk rumors and spread gossip. There is no way the Mayor will do anything that is not in the best interest for Vidalia. The people will have input into what ever happens.
Posted by peachpit (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 5:31 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The new complex is expected to bring out-of-towners for baseball and softball tournaments. It will only benefit both sides of the river with Natchez building all those hotels that's not being filled.
Posted by beammeupscotty (anonymous) on June 6, 2010 at 8:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If they abandon the old ball fields will the property revert back to the family that donated the land? This would be some nice property to build houses on.
Posted by kfchicken (anonymous) on June 7, 2010 at 3:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
we need a skatepark!
Posted by gerandall58 (Greg Randall) on June 7, 2010 at 6:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
No doubt about it , we need this , parking around the fields at the parks we have now is dangerous , kids darting in and out between vehicles and crossing the public roads has come close on a few occasions of causing tragedy !!
Vidalia has simply outgrown that facility , it is time to move on .
Posted by bigh35 (anonymous) on June 7, 2010 at 7:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
i think they should add an r\c car track either to the new recreation area are use one of the old ball fields for that there is alot of kids in the local area that does not play sports but does enjoy r\c cars and trucks
Posted by vidalialife (anonymous) on June 7, 2010 at 10:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)
a new park will be great! but have we been upfront about all the cost of running it or will that come later? also who will be put in charge of it, will aplication be taken for that or will another of the mayors buddies just be put in that positon, wish i had been his business parter or high school boy friend!
Posted by Mz318 (anonymous) on June 7, 2010 at 12:18 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Kudos to the officials who are making this thing happen. Let's just hope that Mike Bowlin is not heading it up like he is the current parks. I have been truly disappointed with the league the last two years.
Posted by BigFred (anonymous) on June 7, 2010 at 3:29 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Vidalialife -
I wish I could see the humor in you getting on here and making wise cracks about the people who work for the mayor. One thing I have taken into consideration is -Yes the mayor has hired one of his lifelong best friends. He's also hired people he's known most of his life. BUT is there any reason why he shouldn't have? I think it was a wise choice. The mayor knows those lifelong buddies and knows whether or not they are dependable upstanding people or not. I would suggest reconsidering your opinion. The people you speak of are not just hanging off his coat tails, they're hardworking individuals who actually care about this area.
Vidalia is definitely a city on the move!
Posted by mskitty (anonymous) on June 7, 2010 at 5:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)
vidalialife, u need 2 get a life. You are making accusations about the mayor. U sound very jealous. The mayor has worked hard for everything he has accomplished in his life. You need to be careful with your language "boy friend" was not a very good choice of words. I bet you are not brave enough to say these things to the people u slam on the nd site.
Posted by vidalialife (anonymous) on June 8, 2010 at 7:09 a.m. (Suggest removal)
yall are right poor choice in words. but the mayor of vidalia should have nothing to do with somthing that falls under the rec board. as far as his choice in who he places where that is fine but how do you know you have made the right choice when no aplication was ever taken for those created jobs. if you look a the parks now you are putting the blame on mike bolin, but it is the rec boards job to maintain what we have, and they are not doing it. to me it looks like they have let it run down just so we could get a yes vote on the new parks. hell it would help if the police department would write littering tickets to the people littering up there instead of just ridding aroung on a golf cart. but wait a person with a ticket my not want to vote the same way in the next election. people should pay real close attention to what is going on and not just the parts they want us to know.
Posted by mskitty (anonymous) on June 8, 2010 at 6:34 p.m. (Suggest removal)
vidalialife, the mayor has not made all the decisions and he does not run the police department. The police chief and police jury are elected positions. You need to study up on government. Maybe some English classes might also help. I have also lived here my entire life and Vidalia has made great progress in the past 18 years. I doubt you could do as good of a job.
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