News

appointments for mcpherson park committee

Monday,  November 26, 2001

November 30, 2001
Colleyville City Park

Dateline: Monday November 26, 2001 4:55 PM

McPHERSON PARK MASTER PLAN COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS TO BE MADE AT TUESDAY’S COUNCIL MEETING by Linda Newton

  The Colleyville City Council is expected to make appointments to yet another McPherson Park Master Plan Committee at their regular meeting on Tuesday, November 27, 2001.  The committee was established at the October 16, 2001 council meeting, and its purpose is to review the existing plan and “develop a plan that addresses both the current and future recreational and athletic needs of the City” according to the agenda briefing.

Thirteen applications have been received for the seven-member committee.  Citizens submitting applications include Linda Baker, Nelson Thibodeaux, Ed Havran, Pat Davis, Mark Howe, Jenifer Zimmerman, Robert Leininger, Tom Sweatt, Bill Mitchell, Lynn Putnam, Shawn Roach, Gail Manion and Dee Barker.  

Several members of the original committees spoke at the October 16^th meeting and encouraged the council to ensure that representation from the original committees be included in the new appointments.  Controversy over the future of the park began during the priority-setting sessions the council held in July 2001.  At that time council began considering changing the plans put in place by previous councils to create a passive park that would honor the area’s agricultural history.  The competition for parkland and the needs of the various athletic associations for more playing fields became a campaign issue during the May 2001 city council elections.   

Several council members have been critical of the original plan’s inclusion of a dairy museum.  Opponents of the proposed changes to the park’s existing Master Plan stated at the October 16^th meeting that the plan for the museum would only have proceeded if outside funding sources, such as donations from the dairy industry, could have been obtained.   

Citizens applying for the new committee have come from both supporters of the original plan and from representatives from the various sports associations.  There was some discussion at the October meeting about expanding the size of the committee in the event that a large number of applications were received.   

The council has been criticized in recent months for excluding certain points of view in their appointments to city boards and commissions.  The recently appointed Ethics Committee did not include any applicants who had been critical of the Ethics Resolution passed by the council in April 2001.  In fact, all appointments to that committee were made from applications received after the deadline to apply had passed.  At least one of the current applicants for the McPherson Committee has stated that she was contacted by a council member and encouraged to apply because the council was “desperate” for applications.  

Several speakers at the October 16^th council meeting were opposed to spending additional taxpayer dollars on ongoing consultant’s fees for park planning for McPherson.  The existing plan was developed with citizen input over a period of time and involved the use of a number of consultants.  

Other items on Tuesday’s agenda include the swearing-in of newly elected council member Richard Newton, and the presentation of a plaque to outgoing Councilman John Orrell.

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