The State of Illinois announced last week that funding for many park projects across the state would be re-instated.
In Galesburg, that ensured roughly $660,000 in renovations at Rotary Park would be back on track.
A state grant of $330,000 will be paired with $440,000 from Rotarian fundraising for the park and an endowment plan.
That’s according to Mayor John Pritchard who says original plans to include a splash pad, rain garden, walking trails and an ice rink are all still in place just as they were when City Council approved the project two years ago.
Pritchard tells WGIL a construction timeline isn’t set in stone, but he hopes work will be underway sometime in the near future.
“It’s kind of late in the year to start the process, so, I imagine that maybe there’s a chance we can get work started this Fall, maybe we’ll have to wait until the Spring,” Pritchard says. “We just don’t know the answer to that yet, obviously we want to get it done as soon as possible, but, you know, a lot of contractors are very busy right now so getting people back on the job quickly might be difficult.”
Along with the new recreation features, the park will be handicap accessible. Upon completion, Pritchard says the park will offer features that are not any other park in the city.
