Parks looking to resurface Volunteer Park trail

Wrangell Parks and Recreation is looking to raise some funds and gather a few hands to spruce up the trail at Volunteer Park.

Volunteer is the most popular public use facility in Wrangell, outside of the city’s ports and harbor system. It already got a bit of work last year, with two culverts added and some patchwork done to its trail surface. In laying down patches, the department used a different, smaller grade of rock, which proved pretty popular with runners.

“We got a lot of positive response from the community,” said department head Kate Thomas.

This summer she would like to resurface the trail’s entire 1.5 miles in the new stone, while addressing various roots and washed out sections still needing repair. A pair of drainage culverts are to be added alongside as well.

“It needs it,” Thomas said.

Getting a rough estimate on the project from local contractors, she expects the rock work itself may cost $17,500. Thomas is hoping to raise $20,000 in all, with another 25-percent matched by Parks & Rec. The additional resources would go into Volunteer Park’s baseball fields, replacing boards and repainting their dugouts and various facilities.

Thomas said her department is also scheduling a community work day for April 22, coinciding with Earth Day. The six-hour work day will designate crew leaders and teams of volunteers for different tasks related to upkeep for Volunteer Park – things like pressure washing, repainting, devegetation and setting materials. Thomas explained the projects address maintenance issues that have been overlooked “a long time.”

“Through our website we will have an event page,” she went on, where those interested in helping out can donate either time or money for the park projects.

The Park Board is also expected to revisit a trail extension project that has largely mossed over since 2015. A trail linking that at Mount Dewey to Volunteer Park was suggested by Thomas’ predecessor, after being put in for Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) funding consideration through the Federal Highway Administration. A series of public discussions were held over site options and materials, and Thomas would like to look back into the potential project.

The board meets next on March 1, inside City Hall at 7 p.m.