The city of St. Joseph Parks Advisory Board is one step closer to approving a new master plan for Tiscornia Park, but public opposition remains high.
The board held their regular meeting on Thursday. Chief among public interest was what the board members would signal as their preference for the final master plan recommendation. After extended discussion and, at times, confusion over what their recommendation would include, the board voted and forwarded their recommendation for what they hope is a final revision.
No longer in the plan: A children’s playground, a nature trail, and a proposal to demolish the existing picnic pavilion in favor of a larger and relocated gathering pavilion. Still contained in the plan, recommendations for a larger parking lot, a new maintenance shed and trash dumpster structure, ADA portable toilets, boundary markers, and signage.
The effort is part of the park board’s work to draft a formal vision for the future of each of St. Joseph’s public parks. For Tiscornia and nearby Paddler parks, board members brought in consultants OCBA Landscape Architects from Kalamazoo in to help develop a vision for each of those areas. The ultimate document is intended to help future parks boards and city representatives know where their starting point is and understand the intended vision for each area.
ADVERTISEMENT
Your content continues below
The first master plan draft for Tiscornia Park was presented to the public for input in January 2023. It came with a slew of recommendations that citizens say threaten the character of the park and would take away Tiscornia’s rustic charm. Since then, several individual proposals have fallen away, largely due to public input.
On removing the pavilion proposal, board member Nancy Buckleitner said, “I think most of the board felt that it was adequate where it was to begin with.”
On backing away from elements of the original proposal, parks board chair Jeanne Strine said public input played a role.
“It’s a process. It’s an exhausting process. I know that it frustrates many with respect to how long it takes. If anything you’ve learned today… it’s how detailed oriented it is.”
Nearly two dozen area residents attended Thursday’s meeting to publicly voice their opposition to the several remaining provisions of the plan.
Long-time area resident Jim Jeschke expressed frustration at the parks board and the process they’ve followed.
“I think they should just listen to what the people say and fix what’s absolutely necessary and let everything go just like it is.”
Jeschke pledged to follow the matter to the city commission and hopes they will ultimately reject the plan.
The parks board is expected to vote on their recommendation September 14. The expectation is the city commission could take it up as early as the 25th.