Clapp Park could be the next park to see a major upgrade.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Clapp Park could see a major upgrade in the coming years.
The city has partnered with the Rotary Club and the Buddy Pellerin Field Committee on a state grant to complete a major park renovation.
They have already made a number of upgrades to the baseball field and they still have more in mind.
At the same time, the Rotary Club has raised money to install a splash pad near the playground area.
"The Rotary Club has been a great partner with the city and we look forward to working with them," Parks and Open Spaces Manager James McGrath said.
In total, the project will cost some $610,000, with $400,000 hopefully coming from the state. McGrath said the plans include improvements to not only the baseball field and the addition of splash pads, but also look at improving parking, restrooms, and "a number of other issues that need to be addressed."
"We applied for the grant and we hope to hear in early October whether this has been funded," McGrath said.
He added, "there is zero match from the city of Pittsfield."
That type of improvement to parks has become a trend. In a short period of time, the Parks Commission approved changing the names of three city parks after being petitioned by residents and all three groups have followed through with efforts to spruce the respective parks up.
In October 2016, the Parks Commission approved changing the
name of Highland Park after Christopher R. Porter. On Tuesday, McGrath said new equipment has been ordered to replace the aging playground there and that the volunteers behind that effort will be holding a community build, too, on July 29.
"They've raised a lot of money to start making a lot of improvements at the park," he said. "That equipment is in the order of $14,000, $15,000 and that was entirely raised by the neighborhood group."
New fencing has been installed and benches have been priced out. McGrath said he will next be looking to install new signage there.
As for park signage, the city is looking to replace all signs in the park system t
o make them standardized. The Parks Commission previously approved a design, which is similar to the signs used at the conservation areas but with a different background color, and now McGrath says he'll be looking to craft a long-term plan to change them out.
"We'd like to see all of the parks have the consistent signage. ... Eventually, the idea is to brand all of the parks together," McGrath said.
He later added, "Once we get the Durant Park ones in, we can take a step back, take a breather, and then develop that long-range change out plan."