BY DAN HILDEBRAN
General manager
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS—A new plan unveiled for city council members earlier this month would overhaul the city’s parks, including converting the Leona F. Terry Azalea Park into a dog park.
Erin K. Rothman, managing director of Manzana City Inc., presented the unified parks plan to the city council. She said the master plan she is developing would link existing parks and green spaces and standardize park amenities and signage for a cohesive look and user experience across the parks.
Rothman said the four objectives in her plan are inclusive accessibility and connectivity; enhancing recreational, educational experiences and opportunities; community engagement and economic development; and sustainability, safety, and preservation.
Theme Park
Rothman said her plan for the theme park, which is nestled between city hall and the public library, is to highlight the Moon Tree, which now is west of the library on Oriole Street.
The planner called the Moon Tree, which got its name because its seeds traveled on the Apollo 14 moon mission in 1971, “one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen, and I felt it had just one little plaque in one little area.”
“So, if we made that a focal point of the park and had lighting that represented the, I guess, moony nature of the tree and then some private seating areas and trails that moved through the park, but really making that a focus of the theme park,” she said.
Rothman proposed that another theme park feature could be what she called Tails and Cheers.
“This is similar to what y’all have by the trailhead on the bike path where you have the storybooks along that path that the library helps set up,” she said. “We thought we could also do something similar here, especially since it’s right outside the library.”
Natural Park
Rothman next discussed the Natural Park across the street from city hall, which now features a gazebo, butterfly garden, and picnic area. She recommended the addition of interconnected pavements with interactive musical instruments and an expansion of the butterfly garden, which could include sculptures of the winged insects.
She also suggested interactive plaques informing visitors of the natural features and history of the city. Lastly, she recommended a picnic area where visitors could look across the street to the beach.
Beach Park
As for Keystone Beach Park, Rothman said adding palm trees to the park’s existing live oaks could create more of a beachy feel in the park. She also recommended moving some of the engraved slats within the Geneva Jungle, possibly using the slats to build benches in the park.
Mayor Nina Rodenroth said the slats now obscure visibility into the children’s playground and may contribute to park vandalism.
“If you’re sitting on a bench on the other side, you can’t see things in the back, and we know that things go on, and families get a little upset,” the mayor said.
Rothman said she is considering adding more water features near the shoreline and upgrading the current kayak launch.
Azalea Park
Rothman said converting Azalea into a dog park would entail fencing the entire block, keeping the current gazebo, and installing a dog splash pad. An obstacle course would provide recreation for the canines, a trail would create a course for walking, and a sunken seating area would provide seclusion for shy dogs and a place for families to hang out and watch the puppies.
“So, you can train your dogs and walk your dogs,” she said. “And if you don’t want to have to take the trail, you can take the little stone pathway across to that gazebo and get some shade.”
Sunrise Park
Rothman said the planning for Sunrise Park is important because of the likelihood that the now forested area west of the park would be developed into a new subdivision. She added that the possibility of a new city hall displacing the current basketball courts at the corner of Southeast Lakeview Drive and Southeast Palmetto Avenue adds another degree of importance to planning Sunrise.
The planner proposed a new Sunrise Park with two basketball courts, two pickleball courts, four batting cages, a skate park, two tennis courts, a couple of playgrounds, and a jogging path that goes around and through the facility.
The plan also includes an eating area and food truck parking.
“So, parents can sit there,” she said. “They’ve got the playgrounds on either side where they can keep an eye on their kids.”
She also proposed two separate play areas for Sunrise Park, one for older children and one for younger tots.
