Celina City Council members discussed updates to the master plan for Ousley Park during an Oct. 10 meeting.
The details
Many of the details for the approximately 30-acre park have been community driven, said Matthew Milano, a project manager and landscape architect at the engineering consultant firm Freese and Nichols.
“I wanted to also acknowledge all of the hard work that was done prior to this master plan effort from the community just to get us to a good starting point with this project,” Milano said.
Celina residents were able to choose between two park layouts as well as offering input through surveys, he said.
The final designs will use the second layout option while adding what residents loved from both options instead of picking one, Milano said.
“We tricked everybody,” Milano said.
Here are some of the features that made it to the master plan:
- A trail following Doe Branch Creek
- A large art fountain
- An art walk with two paths
- A dog park
- A community garden
- Multiple playground areas
- A basketball pavilion
- Tree house observation areas
Some features that were ultimately removed from the plan, such as sand volleyball courts and a splash pad area, are expected to be provided at future parks and as part of a downtown redevelopment effort.
“Our goal is to put that splash water feature in the downtown square,” Assistant City Manager Kim Brawner said.
The breakdown
The project is expected to cost just over $21 million, according to a meeting presentation.
- Ousley Park improvements: $12.7 million
- Doe Branch stream and trail improvements: $8.5 million
More presentations regarding Ousley Park are expected at future council meetings before the designs are finalized sometime in 2024, according to a meeting presentation.
Construction is expected to start in 2025, but that could change depending on when Wilson Creek Park is finished, Brawner said.
