SUGAR CREEK TOWNSHIP — When officials with Sugar Creek Township Park, 4161 County Road S. 700W, first purchased 88 acres for development with $350,000 of grant money in 2008, they had a master plan and a real vision.
Ten years later, 35 aces has been developed, but officials with the park feel there is still more to do. With substantial housing growth in the area, and much of the major work from the original master plan completed, the board is preparing to update the master plan as they enter the second decade of operation.
Sugar Creek Township Park Board officials Scott Miller, Marie Castetter and Michael Long want to spend around $90,000 to fix some draining issues that continue to flood the park’s playground area. They also plan to finish paving the parking lot, bringing the hard surface parking area to over 80 spaces, which will cost them about $30,000.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
Castetter, who joined the board in 2013, said it’s been exciting to watch the park grow through the first 10 years, and even more fun to think about the growth yet to come.
The board has plans to add a gazebo deeper into the park, at a cost of $6,000, with $2,000 of that coming from grant money. The idea is that having a place for people to visit in the back of the park will get patrons to explore the land more.
However, they mostly want to remind old and new community residents that the park has a little bit of everything for everyone, and is a hidden gem waiting to be explored.
“Many people don’t even know the park is there,” Long said. “Not a lot of people travel down 700 unless they’re heading that way.”
The park board has consistently sought public input as to what amenities people would like to see in the park, but it hasn’t been easy, Miller said.
“With our limited budget ($72,500 a year), we typically save up for a year or two for bigger projects,” he said.
The Sugar Creek Township Park is different from any city park in the county because it is a grant-funded park for the most part, making it a little harder to get things done. Many individuals and groups have contributed time, expertise, and money toward several of the specific projects visitors enjoy.
The board has overseen the creation of a two-mile walking trail, and added two shelters in 2009. In 2010, they spent $40,000 for playground equipment and added a nine hole Frisbee golf course.
In the fall of 2010, New Palestine Travel Soccer started using a portion of the park for soccer fields, and in 2011, $5,000 of equipment was installed on a fitness trail, thanks to a grant funded by Hancock Regional Hospital.
They’ve also created a dog park, free to users, and Dani’s Dreams Outdoor Education Trail at Sugar Creek Park was opened in 2017, as was the Southern Hancock Veterans Memorial sitting at the entrance of the park.
Having the memorial, which cost officials from the New Palestine American Legion Post 182 an estimated $400,000 to complete, is a natural fit at the park, Long said.
While there are plenty of activities to offer visitors, there are some major concerns with the flooding and settling in the parking lot, which has exacerbated the flooding into the playground area.
“Really, the playground area has kind of been a problem since we got started with it,” Long said.
Knowing the water can pool there for days, limiting access, spending the $90,000 for an engineer to help fix the drainage will be money well spent.
Part of the the new master plans call for relocating the playground equipment to an area nearby with two-feet higher elevation.
“Relocation, coupled with an underlying drainage system, seems to be the best plan,” Miller said.
If approved, work on the playground relocation would likely begin early this fall. Part of that drainage issue will also clear up flooding at the entrance of the fenced in dog park, Long said.
Overall, despite the need for some improvements, the board for the most part is happy with the way the park has developed over the past decade.
Bob Boyer, Sugar Creek Township Trustee, is responsible for taking care of the day-to-day work at the park, including making sure the trash is picked up and the grass is cut.
Boyer said he is proud of what the Park Board has accomplish, and he thinks the Veterans Memorial is not only beautiful but is a great tribute to veterans. The trail has developed nicely, Boyer added, and the shelters are frequently used — during the summer the shelters are reserved several times a week.
While the board is hoping one day to add restrooms with working plumbing, the cost associated with maintenance is keeping the project from being added to the new master plan, for now.
Anyone with questions about the park should contact Boyer at [email protected] to find out more about upcoming board meetings.
