From 55-plus miles of leisure trails to more than 2,000 acres of parks and green space, the City of New Albany offers plenty of recreational opportunities. If that’s not enough, even more recreational offerings are on the horizon! Some exciting plans are in the works, including upgrades to neighborhood parks and the creation of brand-new destination parks.
Neighborhood Parks
Courtesy of city of New Albany
It first became apparent in 2019 that upgrading the City of New Albany’s parks network was important to the community. City staff received many park-related comments from residents while conducting outreach for Engage New Albany, the City’s five-year strategic plan. That feedback highlighted the need for New Albany’s existing public parks to be examined and studied for potential improvements. Throughout 2020, staff worked with residents and community groups, such as the New Albany Joint Parks District, to create a Parks Framework Plan.
The Parks Framework Plan includes an assessment of the City’s current parks and equipment, analysis of the accessibility of the City’s parks and trail network, and recommendations for improvements for each neighborhood park. The recommended improvements include updating playground equipment, building accessible features so people of all abilities can use the playgrounds, and improving amenities such as seating and landscaping.
These improvements began in 2021 with Sumption Park in The Links neighborhood. The City of New Albany partnered with The Links HOA to install new equipment, a shade structure, seating benches and a new accessible play surface. Five more neighborhood park upgrades are planned in 2022, including Byington, James River, North of Woods, Lambton and Planters Grove. Once these projects are complete, all City-owned neighborhood pocket parks will have been updated, with all remaining pocket parks still being maintained by their respective subdivision’s homeowner association.
Certainly, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the local economy is something staff members are actively monitoring as it could impact the City’s ability to upgrade the parks within this timeframe. However, City Council has prioritized these efforts as they recognize how important these spaces are to residents and their overall quality of life.
While there is a lot to look forward with the neighborhood parks, the Parks Framework Plan also addresses the creation of three new destination parks to be built in New Albany in the coming years.
Taylor Farm Park
Courtesy of city of New Albany
The Taylor Farm site, which had been a farm dating back to the 1800s, is a nearly 100-acre tract of land bounded by the Rocky Fork Creek, Dublin-Granville Road, Harlem Road and state Route 161.
City Council approved funding in early January 2021 for design work and improvements. The first phase of the project, scheduled to be completed later in 2022, includes three miles of leisure trails, seating in the park, landscaping around designated wetland areas and parking for visitors.
City staff members have not yet determined how many phases there will be in the project overall. Taylor Farm Park will be a work in progress, with new facilities being added as capital funds allow.
The City of New Albany just celebrated the dedication of Rose Run Park on Founders Day last year, but we are already in the planning stages for the park’s second phase to be built across Main Street close to Village Hall.
Rose Run Park Phase II
Courtesy of city of New Albany
Rose Run Phase II will include a beautiful new Veterans Memorial with a hero’s walk, plaza and water feature that will be a wonderful new public space for reflection. This Veterans Memorial will be right next to Founders Field, the community’s first cemetery, to further honor our history, and the park will be supported by up to 50,000 additional square feet of commercial space around what was the Duke & Duchess station on the corner of U.S. 62 and Dublin-Granville Road.
There is currently no timeline for construction, but the City of New Albany is excited to see this project take the next steps towards reality.
Kitzmiller Wetland Park
Courtesy of city of New Albany
Kitzmiller Wetland Park is the third destination park in our long-term plans. This park, which will be built on land that was acquired more than a decade ago between Kitzmiller Road and U.S. 62, will include active and passive areas with walking trails, lots of play spaces and climbing structures for kids, sports courts, and possibly even a place for skateboarders.
This park will remain in the planning stages for at least another couple of years, giving us an opportunity to plan the park in a way that best fits New Albany’s long-term needs.
Counting the Rocky Fork Metro Park to our northwest, in which we’ve invested more than $4 million, nearly one out of every five acres of our land is devoted to parks and green space. That’s more than 2,000 acres, and that number will only continue to grow. We at the City of New Albany hope that you are as excited as we are for what’s ahead with our parks in 2022 and the years to come!
Adrienne Joly is the City of New Albany Administrative Services Director.
