Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

City Council Looking At House For Parks Office

Prescott's City Council is looking at purchasing a house to use as an office and storage space for the Prescott Parks Department.

At the regular monthly meeting of the council, held Monday, May, 21, Prescott Mayor Howard Taylor said the appraisal on the Peters property near the city park has been completed. The appraised value of the house and two lots was $24,000.

There could, however, be a problem, as the owners are asking for $35,000.

Taylor said the property needs some work and to be fenced before it could be used by the parks department. One project would be to make the house handicap accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), by adding a ramp.

Otherwise, Taylor said, the house is in good shape as it's been well maintained.

With the improvements, councilman Danny Beavert said, the cost would be raised to nearly $30,000.

Council member James Cornelius suggested checking into the price of building a metal structure. He said one could be built on the east side of the railroad tracks large enough to house the parks department and put a firetruck in, so firefighting equipment would then be on both sides of the tracks.

Steve Crow, director of the parks department, said either would be nice, but the house would require annual maintenance, with this having to be added to the city's budget.

Crow said he hadn't looked in the storage building on the property, but was told it would be large enough for the mowers and other equipment needing to be stored. The building, he added, has been used to shelter a bass boat.

Cornelius said it would kill two birds with one stone to put up a metal building for the park and fire department, adding a storage room for the park equipment could be added on off the back of the structure.

The issue was tabled until more research can be on pricing a metal building. Taylor said this project may not happen until next year.

Crow updated the council on the repair of the tennis courts. The weather, he said, has caused some delays, and the materials didn't arrive when they were supposed to.

However, he said, the courts should be ready by the time the Chicken and Egg Festival begins on June 1.

The courts will be resurfaced and painted, but, Crow said, this is only a short-term solution. These repairs will last three or four years. The main problem is the cracks are structural.

The City of Nashville has had work done on its tennis courts, but has also had a two-inch layer of asphalt put down at a cost of $22,000.

Something like this, he said, will be Prescott's long-term goal.

Prescott will again be the site for the Little League All Star tournament. Crow said it's unusual for one city to get the tourney twice in three years, but everyone was impressed with the facilities and how the event was handled.

Normally, he said, the tourney location is rotated, and cities get it once every 10 or 12 years.

Prescott, he continued, will again field a strong team for the tournament, and should have a chance to do well again.

Crow said members of the Prescott Baseball Association may come to the council looking for financial help.

The tournament will be held at the James Jones Memorial Sports Complex behind Prescott High School.

There have also been problems with vandalism, trash being left, people drinking and using drugs at the park, Crow said. Because of this, there will be new park hours, with the facility being closed at 10 p.m. nightly, opening at 8 a.m. daily.

Signs will be posted on all three park gates.

Jon Chadwell, executive director of the Prescott-Nevada County Economic Development Office, said work on the rural water project continues, with easements being obtained and sought.

Perry Nelson, water superintendent, said the city has 90 signed easements returned, and will be going to get 40 more. Some 200 easement forms were written up, and only two have refused to sign so far.

Chadwell said more than 400 people signed up for the project.

He told the council the cosmetic company wanting to locate in Prescott is still interested, but needs help in obtaining the defunct Nevada County Hospital.The building, he said, needs a lot of work, and cost estimates are being sought.

Company officials want to begin operation by leasing the hospital, buying it later on to keep start-up costs down.

A problem, he said, is the county is tied to selling the property for 75 percent of its appraised value. Any improvements increase the value, and, therefore, the appraisal.

But, the county can "give" the hospital to the city for appropriate consideration, he said, such as the money owed on overdue utility bills.

The city, as it doesn't operate under the same guidelines as the county, could then lease the facility to the company, if it so chose.

It's important, Chadwell said, to go ahead and get started on this, by having city officials and the city attorney meet with Nevada County Judge James Roy Brown and the county's attorney.

By doing this, he said, when the prospect is ready, the city and county will be as well.

In addition, with the city owning the hospital building, the utility debt could be written off, and no longer carried on the city's books.

The council agreed, and the process will begin soon.

Bids to purchase a new half-ton pickup were sought earlier in the year, with only one company of the three contacted responding.

Information had been sent to Hope Auto, Hope Motor Co. and Gildner's Auto in Arkadelphia, with Hope Auto the only one to respond.

Taylor said the council could accept the bid, if it wanted  it didn't, choosing, instead, to rebid the truck and send information to several other dealers. The bids will be examined at the June meeting.

Taylor said the city may need to have an auction to get rid of several items, basically just taking up space. This includes several old vehicles.

No action was taken on this issue.

The city's library board met and will be looking at different library buildings from June 5-7 to see what design would be best for Prescott's new library.

Taylor said after the visits, the information will be given to the architect and a conceptual drawing could be ready for the board to examine by July.

Chadwell said the paperwork for the Railroad Depot Museum project has been completed and sent to Little Rock.

However, the Arkansas Highway Commission requires a 99-year lease on the land surrounding the depot. As it stands, the city owns the depot, while Union Pacific Railroad owns the land around it.

UP officials will agree to a 25 or 30 year lease, but want to charge the city $1,500 per year for it. The company also wants the money up front.

It would be cheaper, Chadwell said, for Prescott to buy the property. The land will be appraised, with the city then contacting UP to see if it will be willing to sell for the appraised value.