Council Member Yvonne Flores-Cale said the council chose to make improvements to Gregg-Clarke Park because there was a need to update.
“I think since it's one of our older, bigger parks; we just felt like there was a need to update,” Flores-Cale told Community Impact.
According to agenda documents, the installation of the new flooring will cost $80,755 with $40,377.50 of those funds being available from the 2020 General Obligation Bond Fund. The city will pay $500,000 for the skate park.
The remaining half of both purchases will be provided by Hays County, per an interlocal agreement with Kyle in which the county has agreed to match funding to make improvements to the park. Hays County will contribute a maximum amount of $1 million for Gregg-Clarke Park improvements.
Mateflex, a family-run modular tile manufacturer, will install an athletic court surface for Ash Pavilion at Gregg-Clarke Park as a part of the park’s overall improvements. Ash Pavilion was built as part of 10-year-old Ash Crane's ask from the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Crane, who has a congenital heart defect called hypoplastic left heart syndrome, wished for a public concrete roller rink back in 2018. Kyle Hockey, a nonprofit hockey league in Kyle that works to make hockey easily accessible and affordable to people living in Central Texas, was later formed and has continued to grow.
“So many guys have come down, and they love the pavilion. They love the atmosphere; they love the city, and the sport court will just make it better hockey,” Lisa Crane, Ash's mom, told Community Impact.
The new court surface will be 190 feet by 60 feet with high-impact polypropylene modules. The flooring, which will have an interlocking tile system, will have a 15-year limited warranty.
“It means a lot,” Ash, who is now 15, told Community Impact. “Now we can have more people come, and everyone can enjoy the wonderful sport of hockey.”
The council also approved an agreement with Transcend Inc.'s Spa Skateparks for the design and construction of a skate park. Spa Skateparks is a skate park construction company based out of Austin.
On Dec. 6, City Council approved a purchase order of $1 million for the design and construction of the skate park.
Aside from Ash Pavilion, other Gregg-Clarke Park elements that are expected to receive improvements are the basketball and tennis courts, bathrooms, concessions, the interior park road, leveling and grading, landscaping and irrigation, and the playground.
City Council will meet again at Kyle City Hall on March 7 at 5:30 p.m.
