County recreation committee discusses Lonas Young Park

JACKSBORO, TN (WLAF) – Members of the county recreation committee met Monday evening online via Zoom. It was the board’s first meeting since March. Committee members discussed the need to complete several projects at Lonas Young Park. Projects needing to be completed include the expansion of the soccer park, the completion of the RV campground, as well as rocking the beach parking lot.  According to Jay Muncy, the sidewalk was recently finished, as was the lighting project and the pavilion. The beach parking lot is currently being worked on.  There are plans to expand the soccer field to tournament size. It will cost around $50,000 to move dirt to expand the soccer field. According to County Mayor E.L. Morton, the county has scheduled contractors for these projects as “fast as we can.”  The septic system for the RV campground should be started soon, said commissioner Rusty Orick.

The committee discussed the need to hire two employees at Lonas Young Park. Commissioners also voted to open the beach at Lonas Young Park last week at the commission meeting. The beach had been closed due to COVID-19 pandemic. The recreation committee voted in approval to open the beach under “swim at your own risk” guidelines as well during their Monday night meeting. Signage saying swim at your own risk has been installed. Additional signage warning visitors to follow CDC guidelines and follow social distancing rules will also be installed.  There are currently two part-time employees at Lonas Young Park. The county had four part-time employees previously, and is looking to hire two people part-time to replace the two that quit.

In other business, the recreation committee members also listened to guest speaker Joni Bailey, who is a landscape engineer regarding the proposed dinosaur playground at the Lonas Young Park. If approved in the future, it would be funded as a 50/50 matching grant, with the county seeking a $250,000 grant to help build it. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, it is unknown when the grant application would need to be turned in. The recreation committee plans to discuss this more at the July 13 recreation committee workshop.  (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 06/23/2020-6AM)