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TALENT Improvements underway at Chuck Roberts Park Comment By Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 7, 2016 at 12:01 AM By Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 7, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Social News A path that meets Americans With Disabilities Act requirements is under construction in Chuck Roberts Park, and planning is underway to upgrade Little League facilities there that have already seen improvements over the last year. Creation of a 500-foot ADA-compliant loop pathway is going ahead even though the city didn’t receive a state parks grant for a larger path and trails initiative, including the loop in the 11-acre park. The pathway will link to 225 feet of paving already in the area, which includes a splash pad, picnic shelter and sand volleyball court. Path work will probably be finished within a couple weeks depending on weather. “They have been talking about this for a while," said Talent Parks Commissioner Kittie Harrison. “It’s nice to see this moving forward.” The park is the right size for such a trail, she said. The Parks Commission will probably have an event to celebrate the project once it is completed, she added. Upgrades have already taken place at the Little League fields. Phoenix-Talent Little League last year spent $12,000 of its $30,000 annual budget for regular maintenance, Zac Moody, president of the league, told City Council. Maintenance was previously done by volunteers. “Since (Moody) did take over, it's improved tenfold,” Harrison said of the fields. “We actually had a move night out there last year, and it was wonderful.” More improvements are planned, but that requires creation of a master plan with details on the ball field. Without a master plan the group cannot apply for grants from the state or foundations. Donations of services by architects and surveyors have been secured, but the group is dipping into its savings to fund the plan, Moody said. Participation by City Council members and a parks commissioner will be sought for an advisory board. Little League will also ask the city for a portion of funds that are awarded each year to city groups. About 150 kids play baseball and 250 people come to the fields daily during the Little League season, said Moody. Improvements are needed to accommodate more players. More parking and better, bigger fields will be sought. City crews are performing the path work, and much of the needed material was already in city stockpiles, said City Manager Tom Corrigan. The pathway will be a paved surface over crushed granite. Talent applied for a $30,000 grant from the state’s recreational trails fund in 2014 but didn’t get an award. The city would have matched the grant with $15,000. Besides the ADA loop, the grant also would have funded a soft-surface, 1,500-foot loop in the middle of the park, an upper loop in the area of the Little League fields, and 1,050 feet of unpaved connecting paths linked to 655 feet of existing paved paths. City officials will look at the budget to see if more work can be accomplished. A second phase for the splash pad, which opened last summer, will be considered by the council. That phase would involve installation of equipment so that water used at the pad could be recycled, said Harrison. Tony Boom is an Ashland freelance writer. Reach him at tboomwritergmail.com By Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 7, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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