WEBB CITY, Mo. —
Architecture students from Drury University on Tuesday presented the draft version of a final design for King Jack Park at the Webb City 66 Events Center.
About 20 residents, city officials and members of the parks and recreation staff were on hand for the presentation.
The final design was a synthesized version of four individual designs that students presented last month to residents, who in turn shared feedback on elements they approved of, had questions about or didn’t agree with.
When the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is done filling in Sucker Flats at King Jack Park with mining waste, the Parks and Recreation Department will reclaim about 23 acres of park land. The department wanted community involvement as well as ideas from the students as to what the land’s future use might include.
At 144 total acres, King Jack Park is home to the Praying Hands Monument; the Kneeling Miner Statue; the Webb City Farmers Market; the restored 1920s No. 60 Southwest Missouri Electric Railroad Association trolley and one-mile track; the Mining Days Event Center and Outdoor Amphitheater; baseball, softball and soccer fields; and a system of walking trails.
It also is home to Paradise Lake and the historic bowstring arch truss Georgia City Bridge. Two new lakes were built at the back of the park by the EPA as part of the agreement for filling in Sucker Flats.
On Tuesday, the Drury students again sought feedback on the final design.
The public was receptive to several elements of the plan, including the possibility of a bridge or underpass across Highway 171 for pedestrian traffic, improving the base of the Praying Hands statue, improvements to pavilions, adding a splash pad or water feature, establishing areas with native plants, additional parking for the Webb City Farmers Market, and extending the current trolley system around the entire park.
Parks Director Tom Reeder plans to meet with the students today or Friday in Springfield for further evaluation of the design, and to offer input based on his experience with landscaping.
The students will use the public’s feedback and Reeder’s input to tweak the final design, then present it to the city on Dec. 12 at the Route 66 Events Center. Reeder said the plan could serve as a guide for what happens in the park for the next 15 to 30 years.
“Overall, I think they came up with some really unique and good ideas,” Reeder said. “Some we’d discussed before and some we hadn’t, and that’s what we were hoping for.
“They came in with a fresh viewpoint — didn’t have a mindset as to what they were going to see, and they hadn’t been looking at it for several years like me to where they already had preconceived notions. It’s definitely something we can build on.”
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