The concept design for Old Town Park shows both phases of the park, with phase one to include new playground expansion with accessible routes, a swingset, basketball court and parking adjustments.
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MCCORDSVILLE — Three different proposals from engineering groups to work on the updates for Old School Park were discussed at the town council’s last meeting before the council voted to move forward on the project with Veridus Group’s Civil Engineering team for project management.
Old School Park, located off of the northwest corner of CR 600W and CR 750 N, is looking at future updates in phase one that include playground spaces, a basketball court and site and parking improvements on the south side of the property, according to Veridus’ project proposal.
Tim Gropp, town manager for McCordsville, spoke at the meeting Tuesday night and shared that part of allocated funds goes toward updates to the parks, Gropp recommended that the council should go with the lowest bid of the three, which was Veridus Group, allowing them to see how far they can go with the funds.
Greg Brewer, McCordsville Town Council president, mentioned that the money set aside for the parks is to help purchase land and equipment, and also the possibility of land purchase in the future.
The other proposals for the park’s future plans came from A&F Engineering and Etica Group.
Veridus Group will also work in collaboration with Context Design for the landscaping design services required in the project.
According to the concept design plan that was provided in the town’s Request for Quotes, phase one is the current objective and will have a new playground expansion with accessible routes, a swingset, basketball court and parking adjustments which will include 39 spaces and the relocation of the monument.
Phase two looks to include pickleball courts and areas for cornhole, horseshoes and a bocce court. Brewer shared that while this replaces the baseball field, it would possibly eliminate the issue of the area flooding so easily.
When the time comes, Gropp mentioned the idea of adding an additional sports park to provide more fields for families to practice and play.
Gropp also shared that they are looking at adding a new larger shelter for the community to use alongside a pathway around the park to be .25 miles.
“We want all of our parks to be a little different,” Gropp said, speaking on the idea of adding new amenities for the community of McCordsville.
Other project experience Veridus Group and Context Design have had in the past is the master plan for Martin Luther King Park by Indy Parks and provided services for Ratio/Beebe Architects for the new Fortville Elementary in Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation, which included a new playground.
Brewer shared that Old School Park was originally gifted to the town from Vernon Township back in 2021.
Fred Prazeau, principal for Context Design, was involved in the original design of Old School Park and shared that he and his family frequently visit the park and attend softball games with his daughter.
Other people listed who will be involved for the project were Gonzalo Castro Diaz, project manager who will be a main point of contact; Jennifer Lasch, director; and Liz Mooney, project manager with Context Design.
Gropp shared that next steps would be the topographical survey and the engineering and construction design. Once those are completed, Gropp said the hope is to start the bid for a construction contractor in the winter for construction to start in the spring.
