Lewisville City Council got a look at its work session Oct.18 at the latest proposal for the 662-acre park along Lewisville Lake. Director of Parks and Recreation Stacie Anaya, along with Regional Director of Landscape Architecture Lenny Hughes of consultant Halff Associates, presented a concept that includes several new camping spaces and areas for natural preservation.
The Lake Park area has several sports fields, including the adult softball and cricket fields, that are used less frequently and are prone to flooding, Hughes said. Relocating those fields to other parts of the city could make room for more camping and RV sites as well as room to revegetate the area and create walking trails.
Other features of the concept include a sand volleyball area, luxury yurts and cabins, and a second point of entry to the park.
The parks and recreation department, along with Halff Associates, began working on the project back in November 2019 but placed it on hold at the peak of COVID-19, Anaya said.
The master plan for the Lake Park area is the first of its kind as the area has continued to evolve from what used to be a catch-all park space, Anaya said.
Since 2019, officials have met with surrounding residents and sent out online surveys about the park, which is operated by the city on property leased from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps has also been consulted on the kinds of changes to include.
Flooding and high water periods in 2015 and beyond have made portions of Lake Park unusable, Hughes said, so relocating the road to provide better access to the park is being considered.
The lake’s shoreline will also need attention as increased water levels from 1998 have caused erosion, Hughes said.
The master plan concept outlines adding riprap boulders around the shoreline of the peninsula to protect from erosion while matching the surrounding colors.
The lake’s marina and fishing barge also need to be updated in order to comply with Corps requirements on space and accessibility, Anaya said.
Future steps for the master plan include fine-tuning and finalizing the concept as well as finding developers to execute the park plan and make updates to the marina and barge area, according to the presentation.
