Tot Lot grand opening slides into Watauga on Saturday
By Scott Nicholson
nicholson@wataugademocrat.com

The swings are in full swing and the world is a sandbox, albeit a little damp.

The grand opening for the Boone Tot Lot will be held this Saturday at 10 a.m., though the county still has some work remaining to address drainage at the park.

The Watauga County Board of Commissioners committed $105,000 for new playground equipment at the site, which is located on the county recreation complex in Boone.

The equipment has been in use for a week, with lots of children trying out the equipment despite the rainy weather.

Robert Marsh, the county’s maintenance director, said the installation of the equipment led to some drainage problems that can be solved with pipes. The sandbox and mulched areas have some standing water that should dry up after the work is finished.

The renovated park has a paved walking track that’s just under an eighth of a mile for one lap.

The commissioners committed $50,000 for new playground equipment at the Old Cove Creek School and $30,000 for equipment at the Green Valley Park, installed its equipment two weeks ago. Green Valley is having its dedication ceremony on Aug. 5.

The county is also finishing up the rough grading at the nearby Anne Marie Park site. The property, which was turned over to the town of Boone by the Federal Emergency Management Agency after a flood-plain buyout in the 1990s, is being developed to house two full-sized athletic fields.

Marsh said the fields will have fences about 325 feet from home plate and are primarily designed for adult softball, though they can also be used for senior league and high school baseball. The outfields will likely be used for youth soccer programs in the fall.

“We’re about 90 percent done with the rough grading,” Marsh said. “We’re putting in storm water pipes and about to start the finish grade.”

Marsh expects the field to be seeded by August, which would make it available for the 2008 softball and baseball season. The site also contains a parking area which will also provide access to the Greenway Trail, which passes along the edge of the property. Marsh said the two fields, along with bleachers and batting cages, will take up all the property designated by the town for recreational use by the project.

The county also had to replace about 1,000 feet of town sewer line as part of the project. The total cost, including engineering, is $335,000.

Parks and recreation director Stephen Poulos said the new facilities will help ease the scheduling, which is usually one of the biggest problems for public athletic programs.

“I have friends all across the state and this is a problem everywhere,” Poulos said. “Everybody’s always short on facilities. Everyone’s really worked hard to get this done.”

With the addition of practice fields at Green Valley Park, the addition of Brookshire Park as a soccer site three years ago and the development of new soccer fields at the adjoining Brookshire Road property. Poulos said teams should be able to get more practice time.

“We’ve done okay scheduling the games,” Poulos said. “But the new fields will allow teams to meet more often, maybe an extra time a week. Our philosophy is to try to have the teams practice in their school geographic area, then usually it works out best if they meet in the middle (Boone) for games.”

He added, “We’re very excited about these projects that are coming down the pike. We’re appreciative of the county commissioners. A year from now, we’ll be in much better shape with our fields. We’re working with the High Country Soccer Association on their new fields, and with the Anne Marie Drive fields, we’ve got two huge additions.”