BOARDMAN PARK Board unveils plans

Synthetic lumber made of recycled kitchen bags and recycled sawdust will be used in the Kids' Town play area.
BOARDMAN -- A proposed Boardman Park open-air pavilion will seat 150 people and have parking for 400 cars nearby.
Plans for the $230,000 West Quadrant project were revealed to the park board Thursday.
The parking lot will run along Southern Boulevard near the park entrance there, replacing a gravel lot once used as a concrete dump site. The pavilion and a new playground will be east of the lot, replacing a baseball field.
Architect David S. Kiraly said the 40-by-54-foot brick pavilion, with 15 picnic tables, will be the park's largest.
It will have heated, wheelchair accessible bathrooms with "no touch" facilities. The restrooms will be accessible from the outside.
Kiraly also has proposed vandal-proof lighting and a stainless steel counter with double sink.
Ceilings and siding trim will be built of a fiber-and-concrete product instead of plywood, and the roof will feature a cupola.
The board must decide if it wants a ceiling or leave open trusses, which could be susceptible to bird's and bee's nests, Kiraly said. It will consider costs of both options.
Commissioners also suggested that tarps be available to cover the pavilion's side openings in case of rain.
The ballfield will become an open space recreation area and trees will be planted to buffer the building from the new parking lot.
A wheelchair-accessible roadway will connect the lot to the pavilion area, and a walkway will extend to a parking lot that sits to the east of the proposed pavilion site.
There will be two entrances to the new lot, both off the Southern Boulevard park entrance.
Kiraly also said there are options for lighting over the parking lot and along the roadway leading to the pavilion.
The pavilion project will be funded, in part, by a $131,000 federal Land and Water Conservation Fund grant, said Daniel N. Slagle Jr., park executive director. A $10,000 donation has come from the American Association of Physicians from India, Eastern Ohio, Western Pennsylvania Inc.
Plans for the project will be forwarded to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Real Estate and Land Management for approval. Board members hope to put the project out for bids by late summer.
On agenda
Also during Thursday's meeting:
Kiraly told commissioners that a $68,000 Kids' Town play-area renovation project was completed. Treated lumber handrails, railings and other surface areas were replaced with a synthetic lumber made of recycled kitchen bags and recycled sawdust. Equipment was stained, painted and power-washed and enclosures were placed over slides.Several pieces of equipment were replaced or rebuilt and two new climbing walls were added.
The project was funded, in part, by a $14,000 reimbursement from the Recycling Division of the Mahoning County Solid Waste District.
Kiraly offered to donate his services for a proposed veteran's memorial that will be built near the Maag Outdoor Arts Theatre. Slagle said the stone or granite memorial would be built near a flagpole, with a symbol from each branch of the military and a phrase.
A patio and walkway will feature bricks that can be personalized by the public for a donation to help offset costs. Slagle said township trustees also have expressed interest in assisting with funding.
Kiraly said other plans for the theater include a new dance floor.
The board asked Kiraly to determine cost estimates for restoring the historical St. James chapel.
The board voted to demolish a concession stand that had been damaged by fire in May. The stand was being used for storage, and the board hopes to build a different storage unit. An insurance company will pay up to $17,000 if it is rebuilt.