By Mary Faulds
CCN Correspondent
GALION — Galion City Council took the first step Tuesday evening to submit four projects to the Freese Foundation for grant money. Galion Mayor Tom O’Leary said that the projects chosen were based off public feedback and an online poll that had several hundred voters.
The first, and most costly project, is a multi-use recreational trail, which will go from the city’s water treatment plant to the Galion City Schools campus, a distance of approximately a mile and a half. The trail will provide an alternative for walking, skating, biking and other pedestrian-friendly activities. It will also open the Olentangy River and scenic wooded areas to the public.
The submitted paperwork has the trail ringing up at $600,000, but during the meeting, Communications Director Matt Echelberry said they have squeezed down the project to approximately half the cost to $316,000. O’Leary said that the change in cost could be amended after passing this first reading of the ordinance.
Auditor Brian Treisch commented that this trail actually has been in the works for approximately two or three years, with the city applying for several grants from the state. City officials soon realized, however, that the grants were being awarded to municipalities that already had trails in place for improvements or expansions, so using Freese grant money would allow them to construct the trail and possibly see more funding from the state for improvements later.
Two restroom facilities also were on the list of projects. One project will be to build new restrooms at the depot and the second will be to replace the old restrooms at Heise Park.
Both new restrooms would be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The depot currently does not have permanent restroom facilities, and the Heise Park restrooms were built in 1960, and last refurbished in 1996.
O’Leary said, that with these projects, it will complete a loop around the city of improving public restroom facilities that previously had been barely above primitive. Both facilities will cost approximately $70,000 each to construct, with the Heise Park facilities adding in another $15,000 for demolition of the existing restroom.
The fourth and final project to be submitted is the resurfacing of the basketball court at Heise Park. City officials said in their description of the project that the pavement is cracking and the court’s current condition is a safety hazard. The estimate for the resurfacing is approximately $28,000.
Before voting, council member Shirley Clark said it needed to be made clear that the projects were being submitted to the Freese Foundation board, which will be meeting on April 17, and the board’s approval is needed before any of the projects can move forward.
O’Leary said that previously there has been public criticism of the projects submitted, saying that they are not part of a cohesive plan, but he said he hopes these projects will show that the city is working to improve public areas.
The first reading of the ordinance passed unanimously.