Park & Rec Needs More Money To Complete Elm Drive Fields

By Steve Bigham

The Parks & Recreation Commission is hoping to have kids playing baseball and softball on the Amaral Property by the spring of 2002. In order to do so, however, it needs to come up with another $35,000, and it plans to go before the selectmen and Legislative Council to get it. If it fails to get approval, the commission may have to eliminate some aspects of the project, including sod, which might push back grand opening ceremonies by another year.

As of this week, its lowest bidder, Deering Construction Company of Norwalk, has agreed to develop the property for $415,000. With the proper funding in place, the company, which has not yet been awarded the bid, plans to begin work in June.

Council members may not jump at the idea of adding more money to the project, even if the money is coming out of the Parks & Recreation’s surcharge account. In September, the council reluctantly agreed to allow the Parks & Recreation to spend an additional $65,000 on the construction of the fields on top of the $350,000 which was already approved in this year’s budget.

  Since that time, Parks & Recreation has had to encumber $35,000 in additional costs, including $18,000 for sod, which brings the overall total to develop the two fields to $450,000.

During its initial bid process earlier this year, only Deering Construction submitted a bid and the firm’s proposal was $80,000 over budget. With no other choice, Parks & Recreation was forced to re-bid the project. Deering Construction was one of two companies to submit bids this time and came in lower than the only other bidder, Cocchiola Paving, Inc., of Oakville, Connecticut.

Three years ago, the town spent $400,000 using Iroquois Land Preservation and Enhancement Program (LPEP) money to purchase the stretch of land along Elm Drive. The “Amaral Property” was eventually turned over to Parks & Recreation to be used for future ball fields.

Last spring, Parks & Recreation requested $550,000 for the development of two baseball diamonds on the land. That figure was eventually trimmed to $350,000, with the remaining costs to be made up by town highway crews, who have been re-grading the property since August. Currently, Public Works equipment still sits on the muddy Elm Drive site.

According to Parks & Recreation Director Barbara Kasbarian, the high cost to build the fields is due to the discovery of unforeseen wetland areas on the parcel. Two retaining walls need to be installed in addition to the extra drainage and irrigation systems. This week, the Parks & Recreation Commission eliminated $7,600 worth of timber steps and railings leading to the parking lot in an effort to reduce costs.

Some town officials have complained that the Amaral Property is simply too damp and not suitable for ball fields and that the site would be better suited left as open space.

The long, narrow field along Elm Drive and adjacent to Dickinson Park was a key acquisition by the Parks & Recreation Commission. When purchased, it was hoped that the property would provide the fields that the town needed. A shortage of fields in town has become a major issue with residents as the town continues to grow.

The former Amaral property extends in a triangular shape in a northerly direction from Dickinson Park to the point where Elm Drive and Deep Brook Road intersect at the Village Cemetery. The lot lies just north of the Dickinson Park tennis courts.

Currently, there are 25 ball fields in Newtown that are available to the public. However, most of the fields are on school property, often causing scheduling problems. More than 1,200 children take part in Newtown’s soccer programs, which are played on local fields in the spring, summer, and fall. Fields have become overcrowded, with practices and games bumping up against one another.