A new regional park will change Lancaster County. New options may make it even bigger
Lancaster County officials saw the clearest picture to date on Monday night for what a new regional park could be, and how it might transform the county.
Woolpert project manager Andrew Pack detailed plans and possibilities for the 84-acre regional park near the massive Roselyn development. The park abuts the almost 1,400 acres between U.S. 521, near North Corner Road, and Old Hickory Road where the county approved a Lennar Carolinas plan in 2019 for more than 1,800 homes.
The park likely will cost about $30 million. The figure could increase significantly depending on what options county leaders include.
A proposed master plan shows four baseball or softball fields, including one large enough to host USC Lancaster baseball games. There are four multipurpose fields, for soccer and other uses. Those large pieces include restrooms, concessions and shade structures. Plus, including overflow, more than 1,100 parking spaces.
“It’s almost like a puzzle,” Pack said. “So those are your big, big areas that’s going to really take up the big spaces on the property. And so the passive recreation, that’s just as important. You’ve got to have a balance.”
The master plan also shows a gym or indoor meeting space, outdoor amphitheater, themed playgrounds and a splash pad, pavilion shelters with picnic areas, pickleball or basketball courts and miles of multi-use trails.
“It’s really a complete, full-use park,” Pack said.
New homes are planned around the park site, and new commercial property is expected to its east.
“This is a park for the county,” Pack said. “But you can see that we’re also looking at property, that commercial, that area to the right there. How can we connect that?”
The first phase of the park would include the baseball and softball complex, the picnic and playground pavilion, a maintenance area and about half the anticipated parking. That portion likely will cost $8-$9 million.
“About this time next year we would hopefully be in construction with this project,” Pack said.
Added options
Pack also presented additional options that could grow the park plan. One involved 20 acres connected to the site owned by Lennar. A company rep on Monday night told Lancaster County Council there’s interest by the company in having the county acquire the acreage. Topography there wouldn’t allow for more intense development, but Pack said an 18-hole disc golf course could tie in to an extensive trial network there.
“We felt like this was a really good use,” Pack said.
An even larger option includes a larger indoor recreation center. The master plan now has a 15,000-square-foot event center or gym near the lone entrance to the park, to its south. Pack showed a different option for a 50,000-square-foot on the northern part of the property, just east of the baseball fields. That option shifts the amphitheater slightly and creates more parking where the smaller building sits in the other plan.
“You’re looking at an indoor running track, possibly indoor pickleball, basketball gyms, a lot of meeting facilities, any type of programming the county may have,” Pack.
The county also would look at an increased price tag. Pack didn’t have exact price details, but said his company recently working on a similarly sized building in North Carolina at about $25 million.
County funding
The county has $7.2 million available now from its hospitality tax fund. The fund generates about $2 million annually. Hospitality tax is a collection on prepared food and drink. Because the high-growth Indian Land area is unincorporated, hospitality tax from restaurants there goes directly to the county rather than any municipality.
Council chairman Steve Harper said the county plan is to bond some portion of the park against that revenue stream. The state also kicked in $750,000 in a partnership that allows USC Lancaster use of a field at the park for its home baseball games.
The county will need more details on presented options before committing to them.
“We need an update on what’s the number there before we start our want list,” Harper said.
Councilman Allen Blackmon said the county has to consider ongoing costs, like staff needed to run the facilities.
“We’re going to have to budget accordingly to be able to put this in motion the minute it hits the ground,” Blackmon said.
Councilman Billy Mosteller said between weekend recreation and tournament play, college baseball games and more, there are three essentials the park has to get right.
“One is parking,” Mosteller said. “Number two is parking, and number three is parking. We’ve got to have plenty of that.”
Planning work since the spring now transitions to schematic design and development work through next spring. Construction documents and project bidding should happen late spring to early fall next year. Phase one construction would follow. It isn’t clear yet how long that construction will take.
Despite some lingering unknowns, county officials are optimistic.
“I’m excited for where we’re at and what we’ll be able to actually build,” Harper said.
