Paul Bechtel, environmental scientist of McLane Associates, measures the basketball court at Streamside Park.
DALTON — Dalton’s park committee held a public meeting at the Streamside Park pavilion on Wednesday, April 27, to discuss a survey’s results.
The survey was taken by Dalton residents about ways to improve the park to meet their needs. The number of people who took the whole survey added up to 127, while 48 people partially took it. Paul Bechtel, environmental scientist of McLane Associates, talked about the results and showed a regional context map of a 10-mile radius of Streamside Park.
He said that walking was a big priority for the survey’s respondents. He said that the Trolley Trail doesn’t connect to the park because it terminates eastward. Of the survey takers, 95% want to see the park connected to the trail and 63% want the park to have a health and wellness trail.
“Trying to connect this park to the trail seems to be a priority that a lot of people in the survey are looking for,” he said.
Most of the respondent are married, working adults with families, and 72% of them live in Dalton. According to the results, 79% of these residents use or have used the park.
When asked what they think of Streamside Park, they shared having birthday parties and family gatherings there. They also lauded how close it is to home.
When asked how the park can better serve the community, they suggested ideas such as art and craft fairs, movies in the park, wellness events (outdoor yoga), sports clinics and bridges for fishing.
Although 79% of the survey takers believe that the park is well-maintained, there were responses regarding maintenance problems including a lack of a bathroom facility, muddy surfaces at the playground, and uneven concrete. They also would like the tennis court repaired since it has cracks in the pavement. They believe that the basketball court needs paving and new lines.
According to Betchel, the next step for Stream Side park is to develop a few conceptual master plan options for the committee and public to review. Then a final consensus plan with a phased opinion of probable cost will be prepared. These items (plan and estimate) will be used to apply for funding for construction.
