Gilham Park, 1997 - Laserfiche WebLink

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• 7 -Zo -9 opt h Eugene g ets new park • in land swa ■ Recreation: The city has traded a field on Gilham Road for an old tree farm and $68,000. 3y ANN PORTAL A planning document for the Wil- the Register - Guard lakenzie neighborhood, which in- r nearly a quarter century of cludes the Gilham Road area, called va Af After it looks like residents of a for the old Gilham Park site to be ;ast- growing north Eugene neighbor- exchanged for a new park site east of the school. food are going to get their own city `The best neighborhood park 'ark. They may even get two. PAR.K Continued from Page 1D The city and Bob Meltebeke, sites are more in the middle of neighborhoods," Etter said. "More 'resident of Bob Meltebeke 's Para- kids can get to the (new) park with- an important attraction for those run their dogs without a leash. iise Homes, have struck a deal. Mel- families. Etter said neighbors of the new out having to cross busy streets." ebeke is deeding to the city a new "We hope to contribute sufficient park site will get to comment on City parks officials hope to begin hree -acre park site east and south- meeting this fall or winter with funds to make it one of the nicest whether they want an off -leash area past of Gilham Elementary School. neighborhood parks in Eugene. But at the new park. In the meantime, The new park site includes part de g hbo s at put school into disc new the city will make that decision just he is directing dogs and their owners )f a former Christmas tree farm that as they made the decision to move to the off -leash area at Alton Baker as never cut, Meltebeke said. To- park, he said. the park," Meltebeke said. Park. Etter foresees a small neighbor - lay, the old tree farm is a dense The Eugene School District is hood park to serve the existing and ;tand of massive pine and fir trees. new development that is rapidly doing its own land swap with Mel - Meltebeke, in turn, has become closing in on Gilham School, which tebeke that will add another 1.5 )wner of a nearby 6.7 -acre field on acres to the new city site. The acre - itself is undergoing a major expan- 3ilham Road that the city bought in Sion. age is just east of a new playground :he 1970s as the site of Gilham Park While the park probably will being built on the east side of the mit had never developed. school and abuts the city site. In a have at least grass, trees and paved straight trade, Meltebeke will The developer wanted the site as walkways for roller -skating and rid- gli 'art of a 300 -lot residential project ing.wheeled toys, Etter doesn't envi receive a nearby 1 y2 acre parcel ie is building along a one -mile swath that wasn't as important to the 'rom Ayers Lake, on the south side sion ballfields or paved parking lots. school district. )f Ayers Road, east to County Farm Visitors can park on new streets that Jonathan Lauch, administrator of Road. The subdivisions will include will be built on three sides of the facilities planning for the Eugene :ake Shore Estates, Elkridge of Eu- park within the next year or so, he School District, said he expects the ;ene, Forest Park Estates and Sur- said. city and school to work together on Big, multi -use parks such as Ama Tannin and maintaining the new •ey Estates. planning g zoo and Alton Baker are expected to Meltebeke also paid the city park. serve as community gathering The only losers in all the swa ibout $68,000 — roughly the differ- Y PP nce between the appraised value of Places, not as neighborhood parks, mg may be dog owners. The closure he said. two weeks ago of the former Gilham he two properties. And he will cover g ;ome street - building costs next to the "I would hope that we won't de Park site meant the loss of one of velop the park so intensely so as to iew park the city otherwise would the city sites where residents could tY attract people from other parts of lave had to pay. ...:,;,.::,. town," Etter said. "They ended up with a park -and Meltebeke said he and his wife, • luite a bit of money left overre15try Sara, have a special interest in the inother one," Meltebeke said. new park because it will be bor- Parks officials said they would dered on three sides by planned ike to use the $68,000 to buy another Meltebeke subdivisions. Several >ark site in the same vicinity in the other developers also are building sear future. around the Meltebeke projects. John Etter, the city's manager of The homes he's building east of he Gilham Park project, said the Gilham Road will be "family orient - :ity never developed Gilham Park ed" and will cost $200,000 to >ecause it's too big for a nei $300,000, with some as high as • food park and because Gilham $500,000, he said. The park will be toad became too busy to be safe for ? :hildren. Turn to PARK, Page 4D