City, Rockets partnering

Portland Park Board and the Portland Rockets will partner on a project to add a new concrete pad at Portland Memorial Park’s Runkle-Miller Field.

The board will also consider other projects related to the Rockets and at Milton Miller Park on the north side of the city.

The Rockets proposed the concrete pad project last month, saying a donor had offered to provide picnic tables for the area in front of the concession stand. Rockets supporter Randy Fisher said Tuesday that The Goodrich Family Foundation is donating the tables.

Park board members Brian Ison, John McFarland and Shauna Runkle, absent Michael Brewster and Jennifer Weitzel, approved an agreement with the Rockets for the project. City employees will handle the installation of the concrete while the team will pay for materials, estimated at $2,912.35. The agreement also specifies the location, size and other details of the project. It is expected to be completed in the next few weeks.

Fisher also asked the park board to consider allowing the Rockets to place a 20-foot by 45-foot storage building in the park. Ison, the board president, asked Fisher to talk with street and parks superintendent Matt Shauver and parks manager Ronnie Reynolds about an appropriate location for such a structure. (Fisher said the team would be seeking a grant from The Portland Foundation for the building.)

Shauver also said Runkle-Miller Field will likely need to have its electrical system upgraded soon. (The city early this year completed a similar project at Weiler-Wilson Park.)

The board also discussed possible continued expansion at Milton Miller Park, including potentially adding more pickleball courts.

Local pickleball enthusiast Steve Craig said the new courts at the park are used regularly, usually with at least 12 players and with a high so far of 22. (There are two courts, allowing eight players at a time.)

Ison said there is the possibility of installing more to the north or south of the current courts, but added that he’d like his fellow board members to consider bringing on a consultant to look at growth opportunities throughout the city’s park system. 

In addition to pickleball courts, he also mentioned soccer fields, tennis courts and restroom upgrades.

Craig also asked about getting a windscreen for the pickleball courts, estimating a cost of $500 to cover the west and south sides.

The board accepted a donation of a tree from Craig to be placed between the park’s Franklin Street parking lot and the courts.

Shauver said city workers can likely handle most of the demolition of existing baseball/softball dugouts at Milton Miller Park though some help may be needed to make sure the removal of electrical wiring is handled properly.

During his parks update, Reynolds noted that all park facilities have been pressure washed, basketball hoops have been painted with court lines to follow at Haynes Park and the arch and welcome sign have been painted at Hudson Family Park. The concession/restroom building at Hines-Inman Memorial Field was pressure-washed and painted in a joint project between the city and Jay County Pee Wee Football.

A project to add lighting along the walking trail at Hudson Family Park is expected to begin soon. Shauver added that the park’s fountains, which were damaged by a power surge earlier this year, can likely be repaired.

Ison offered a reminder that Sunday, Aug. 11, is the final day Portland Water Park will be open this year. (Pool manager Eliza Bader will provide a year-end report at the September board meeting.) Staff also noted the new pool heater is fully operational.

Reynolds said the umbrellas at the water park are severely worn. The park board asked he and Shauver to get quotes on replacing that material.

Because of schedule changes surrounding Labor Day, the board’s next meeting will be at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 10.