Wednesday, May 1, 2013
By combining the Administration, Enterprise and Ranger buildings into one building, the Parks Department will get the space they need—and save money.
The St. Charles Parks and Recreation Department had to get creative when they realized back in 2011 that they would not have the money to expand their Administration Building the way they'd hoped. The lowest bid for their hoped-for expansion project from came in at $619,000. The department had budgeted $589,000 for the project, and parks board members were concerned about decreasing tax revenue. READ MORE: Parks Administration Office Expansion Put On Hold But instead of giving up, the department came up with a plan. They decided to combine the three buildings currently connected by a breezeway—Administration, Enterprise and Ranger/Maintenance—into a single building. With all three buildings under a shared roof, the breezeways could become…
Thursday, January 31, 2013
St. Charles Parks and Recreation will host four events in 2013.
St. Charles Parks and Recreation plans to host four Food Truck events in Frontier Park in 2013. The food truck events are scheduled for April 16, June 18, August 20 and Oct. 15 -- all Tuesdays -- from 5 to 8 p.m. Park Director Maralee Britton said the department considered hosting events monthly from April to October but thought that might be too many. "When we looked at it, it would be overkill," she said. "I know there are others in St. Charles County looking to bring out food trucks as well." The Food Trucks in Frontier Park will be held every other month on Tuesdays because it doesn't conflict with other city events like Music on Main on Wednesdays and performances by the St. Charles Municipal Band on Thursdays. The day also works …
Thursday, January 10, 2013
St. Charles Parks and Recreation Department hopes to open new park in 2013.
Just across from the Family Arena, the St. Charles Parks Department has been quietly working on a new park for the past several years. The department plans to make opening Webster Park a priority in 2013. The city developed a master plan for the property, located at 2201 South River Road, in 2005. The park features rolling hills, wooded areas with trails, a fire pit, a playground and building which can be rented for events. Webster Park backs up to Heatherbrook Park. The two will be connected with a series of trails. In the past few years, the Parks Department has built a road to Webster Park, put in a fire pit and converted a garage into a building which can be rented by residents. This year, the department also has plans to go out for…
Friday, January 4, 2013
The city offered an ice skating rink in Frontier Park for two years and one Parks Board member wants to see it return.
For two years, visitors to downtown St. Charles could take a spin on an ice skating rink in Frontier Park run by the city during the winter months. The city shut down the rink after the 2010 season due to cost concerns, but some members of the community are hoping to see it return. TJ Slattery, a member of the St. Charles Parks and Recreation Board, is campaigning for a joint effort between the Tourism Department, City Council and the Parks and Recreation Department to bring back the ice rink for the 2013-14 winter season. "I have had a lot of calls this year saying, 'Hey, where is the ice skating rink?'" he said. "I think it's a good amenity. You don't want to overdo it, at the end of the day you want to offer things that are cool like…
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Playground is the fourth in the St. Louis region that Unlimited Play helped raise funds to build.
Unlimited Play and the St. Charles Parks and Recreation Department celebrated the grand opening of the new Discovery Playground at Jaycee Park on Friday. The $850,000 playground includes features that make the playground accessible to all children, including those with disabilities. The playground has a water play section, sun shades and metal slides rather than plastic slides. The entire playground is also fenced in. Read our previous stories about the playground:
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
St. Charles Parks Department plans city's first large-scale food truck event.
Updated Oct. 1 with the list of food trucks which will be at the event. Food trucks will converge in Frontier Park for the city's first large-scale food truck event from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 4. St. Charles Parks Department is organizing the event, which Director Maralee Britton hopes will be similar to the monthly Food Truck Friday events at Tower Grove Park, hosted by Sauce Magazine. Eleven food trucks are expected to be in the park including Burger Ink, Cha Cha Chow, El Gran Taco, Go Gyro Go, Hot Aztec, Papa Tom's Fancy Franks, Sarah's Cake Stop, Sarah's Meltdown, Speedway Eatery, The Sweet Divine and Zia's "On the Hill." Trailhead Brewery and Little Hills Winery will sell beverages. Musicians Clayton Jones and Eric Prewitt, from…
Friday, August 17, 2012
City is recycling water from swimming pools for use in street sweepers, sewer vac trucks and for landscape watering.
St. Charles lifted its voluntary water conservation order on Thursday. Water usage has decreased since the city first issued the voluntary order July 5, according to a press release from the city. Daily use dropped to 10 million gallons per day this week, down from a high of 15 million gallons per day over July 4th. Although the order was lifted, the Public Works Department is workign with Parks and Recreation to recycle water from city swimming pools. The Public Works department used a pump and hose connection at Blanchette Pool and the water was used in street sweepers, sewer vac trucks and portable water tanks for landscape watering. The city may also recycle the water at McNair and Wapelhorst pools. According to city officials …
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Sculpture for the new trail linking Frenchtown and New Town was vandalized before the trail ribbon cutting ceremony last week.
Artist Andrew Andrasko didn't really get a chance to see the statue he made for the Boschert Greenway Trail until it was installed June 12. The statue, called Blomstré, stands in the center of an overlook near the intersection of North Fifth Street and Little Hills Expressway. It's the centerpiece for the new trail extension that connects New Town to Frenchtown in St. Charles. Standing at 30 feet tall, the three flowers were too tall to stand up in his studio. "I didn't see it until the end," he said. Andrasko finished the piece in just about six weeks. He said he presented the team with four possible designs which met the criteria that it be kinetic and involve biking. Each flower is made of 20 wheels, and has two bike frames which …
Friday, June 15, 2012
Section of trail connects New Town to Frenchtown and is a piece of the Great Rivers Greenway.
Community members gathered on Friday for the grand opening of the new section of the Boschert Greenway trail which runs between New Town and Frenchtown. See more photos from the grand opening on our Facebook page. The entire route now provides riders and runners with 10 miles of trail throughout the area, said Mayor Sally Faith. Susan Trautman, director of Great Rivers Greenway, said she's excited to make a major connection along the Boschert Greenway. "What is unique about this project is the living wall. We're working really hard to develop sites that are sustainable and good for the environment," she said. St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann challenged governments and community leaders to make sure bike paths are a part of a …
Friday, May 25, 2012
Rates increase at three St. Charles Aquatic Facilities.
St. Charles Parks and Recreation's three aquatic parks open May 26 this year. The swimming season varies at each park. McNair Aquatic Park and Blanchette Aquatic Park are open until Aug. 5, while Wapelhorst Aquatic Park is open until Aug. 12, and then on weekends only through Sept. 3. The Parks Department has cut back the hours that Blanchette Aquatic Facility is open on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. to 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. McNair Aquatic Facility will also open at noon instead of 11 a.m., seven days a week. The daily admission fees have increased 50 cents for everyone in St. Charles aquatic parks. O'Fallon also raise admission fees by 50 cents at Alligator's Creek Aquatic Center. Residents and nonresidents who expect to use the pools often …
Karen browner
5:05 pm on Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Will there a grand opening? I live within walking distance and have been watching construction. more ›