Parks Department, City In Talks To Bring Food Trucks To Central Park
February 22, 2017 at 7:08 p.m.
By David [email protected]
Toward the end of the Warsaw Parks and Recreation Department board meeting Tuesday, Maintenance Director Shaun Gardner reported the parks is in talks with the mayor and Warsaw Community Development Corp. about possibly having a food truck day one day a week in Central Park this year.
He said he just wanted to know what the park board members’ thoughts on the idea. He said if it becomes popular, events could be scheduled around it.
“It’s just talks right now,” Gardner said.
“I sure don’t know what would be wrong with it,” Park Board President Steve Haines said.
Councilwoman Diane Quance who is a park board member, said her only concern in the summer would be Warsaw Community Schools’ food program at Bixler Park. Gardner said that really wouldn’t be competition because the food trucks would be more for adults working downtown.
“I know that there’s a lot of bigger cities doing this and they’re really popular. There’s only a few food trucks I see around town set up individually. I don’t know if there’s more in the area that we could bring in if we give them the opportunity,” Gardner said.
Recreation Director Sheila Wieringa said they were looking at doing it from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Mondays. The west shelter in Central Park would probably be blocked for use during that time.
Quance said that might help contain trash a little bit.
Earlier in the meeting, Pat Brown, president of Sitescapes Inc., Mishawaka, said Tuesday ended the 30-day public review period of the parks department’s five-year master plan. No members of the public were present Tuesday to provide any additional comments on it.
He suggested further comments board members might have should be forwarded to Superintendent Larry Plummer or secretary Heather Frazier within the next two weeks.
At the March meeting, the final plan will be presented to the board and it can approve it then. It’s due to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources by April 15. The DNR gave the preliminary draft a “very favorable” review, Brown said.
Board Vice President Larry Ladd asked if a sign off Ranch Road could be posted directing people where Kelly Park is.
“It’s such a neat park,” he said.
Haines said if a person doesn’t know it’s there, they pass right by it.
In other business:
• Gardner went over the 2016 Year in Review for the department and the maintenance report.
• Wieringa gave the 2016 recreation report.
She also reported the Daddy-Daughter Dance Feb. 10 had 146 participants. For next year, she is considering having two such dances on different dates and increasing the daughter age range from 3 to 12 to 3 to 14.
Toward the end of the Warsaw Parks and Recreation Department board meeting Tuesday, Maintenance Director Shaun Gardner reported the parks is in talks with the mayor and Warsaw Community Development Corp. about possibly having a food truck day one day a week in Central Park this year.
He said he just wanted to know what the park board members’ thoughts on the idea. He said if it becomes popular, events could be scheduled around it.
“It’s just talks right now,” Gardner said.
“I sure don’t know what would be wrong with it,” Park Board President Steve Haines said.
Councilwoman Diane Quance who is a park board member, said her only concern in the summer would be Warsaw Community Schools’ food program at Bixler Park. Gardner said that really wouldn’t be competition because the food trucks would be more for adults working downtown.
“I know that there’s a lot of bigger cities doing this and they’re really popular. There’s only a few food trucks I see around town set up individually. I don’t know if there’s more in the area that we could bring in if we give them the opportunity,” Gardner said.
Recreation Director Sheila Wieringa said they were looking at doing it from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Mondays. The west shelter in Central Park would probably be blocked for use during that time.
Quance said that might help contain trash a little bit.
Earlier in the meeting, Pat Brown, president of Sitescapes Inc., Mishawaka, said Tuesday ended the 30-day public review period of the parks department’s five-year master plan. No members of the public were present Tuesday to provide any additional comments on it.
He suggested further comments board members might have should be forwarded to Superintendent Larry Plummer or secretary Heather Frazier within the next two weeks.
At the March meeting, the final plan will be presented to the board and it can approve it then. It’s due to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources by April 15. The DNR gave the preliminary draft a “very favorable” review, Brown said.
Board Vice President Larry Ladd asked if a sign off Ranch Road could be posted directing people where Kelly Park is.
“It’s such a neat park,” he said.
Haines said if a person doesn’t know it’s there, they pass right by it.
In other business:
• Gardner went over the 2016 Year in Review for the department and the maintenance report.
• Wieringa gave the 2016 recreation report.
She also reported the Daddy-Daughter Dance Feb. 10 had 146 participants. For next year, she is considering having two such dances on different dates and increasing the daughter age range from 3 to 12 to 3 to 14.
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