Published: June 17, 2009 11:23 pm      

Program Open Space requests far outdistance funds

OAKLAND — With only four requests for Program Open Space funding in Garrett County this year, the totals are still more than triple the amount of funding available.

“I need some time to sit down and look this over,” said Commissioner Fred Holliday.

The county has a total of $77,324.28 available POS funding, with $26,541 of that specifically to go toward acquisition and $15,978 to go to development. Requests, however, total $236,400, and it will be up to the county commissioners to decide where the funding will go.

This year, the town of Oakland has asked for a total of $115,000 in acquisitions and $16,000 in development funding. The acquisitions would be for lots for new soccer fields at $30,000 and the acquisition of the “pocket park” on Second Street. Bill DeVore, planner for Garrett County Planning and Land Development, said the park is near the history museum in Oakland, where the old chimney also is located.

The town of Grantsville is also looking at improvements to their town park. This includes improvements to the parking lot at a cost of $10,000, building changing stations for $400, a $5,000 scoreboard for the softball field and $50,000 lights for the basketball courts.

DeVore said the town included the desire for the lights to be installed on the courts but understood that they were a longshot for funding. He said they weren’t the priority when compared to other projects.

A request was also made at the county level for a Garrett County Trail Feasibility Study. Paige Teegarden of Managence Consulting explained to the commissioners that the study would help determine how best to connect trails in Garrett County to the Great Allegheny Passage.

Holliday asked if the study would be worth anything several years from now if funded. He said he didn’t expect funding to be available for the trail project in the immediate future, so the study would need to be valid for five or even 10 years.

Teegarden said it could be good for as much as 15. She added that upgrades for the trail would pay for themselves eventually. She said portions of the trail that have been completed in Maryland have seen as many as 50,000 people using the trail and Pennsylvania has done studies showing about $12 million in spending that could be attributed to those using the trail in the state.

“This will allow us to go after money,” Teegarden said.

The town of Loch Lynn also had a number of requests for Program Open Space money, all for phase 2 of the Athletic Complex/park area. Two thousand dollars have been requested for design work, $4,000 for clearing and grubbing the area, $9,000 for erosion and sediment control with silt fence stormwater management and grading, $6,000 for the labor and equipment for a stone crusher, $5,000 contingency funds and $4,000 for seed, mulch labor and equipment.

Holliday said he wanted to talk with representatives from Loch Lynn because they had received funding on this project before, and he said that he’d expected the design work would be done by now.

Contact Sarah Moses at smoses@times-news.com.