New parking lot at Douglass Park is near completion
The Columbia Parks and Recreation Department is almost finished putting parking spots in on the side of Fifth Street.
The spaces will replace the parking lot farther inside the park, an area that has experienced a large volume of crime recently.
This is just one of 20 projects the Parks and Recreation Department plans to do at Douglass Park.
“We are in phase I, and that’s just the new parking spots that will be along the street,” said Ginny Chadwick, first ward City Council member.
Chadwick told ABC 17 News the majority of emergency calls come from the current parking lot at Douglass Park.
The Columbia Parks and Recreation reconstruction plan of Douglass Park is a two- phase process.
The first phase costs $100,000 from the parks budget.
In this phase the biggest change to the park is to get rid of the existing park lot, filling it will grass, and putting parking spots along the side of Fifth Street.
“I think it will be easier for our police to enforce that area, it won’t be a place for people to pull in and kind of hide out,” said Chadwick, “There is some real concern about whether we could easily see what was going on in that area.”
The area Chadwick is referring to is near the current parking lot where there is a large shelter several people congregate and drink.
“I am waiting to see how it all plays out, but staff really feels that phase one improvements will help to detour the crime we are seeing,” said Chadwick.
Earlier this summer Chadwick wanted to ban alcohol in Douglass Park to create more of a family atmosphere.
“I did ask for staff to look into something to deal with the perpetual drinking issue at Douglass park, and they feel that these improvements will help with the issue,” said Chadwick.
Chadwick told ABC 17 News the City Council is going to let things play out before going back to the possible alcohol ban at parks.
Phase II projects would need to be funded through the renewal of the eighth-cent sales tax for parks.
The city plans to present that to voters in November 2015.
Phase II projects include new shelters, an amphitheater , and 8,500 square-foot skate park.
