Citizens give feedback on library park project
Interested citizens and stakeholders in Siloam Springs got a chance to catch a glimpse of what may be in store for the area around the Siloam Springs Public Library, currently being called Medical Springs Park.
CARBO and the city of Siloam Springs hosted a public feedback meeting Thursday night in the library, as the process to implement some of the improvements proposed by supporters of the 3/8-cent sales tax that was extended last year. The meeting included a survey, a presentation and two activities aimed at giving the city and CARBO an idea of what the residents of Siloam Springs want out of their next park.
The Medical Springs Park improvement project will be overseen by CARBO, which will be partnering with Hight Jackson, Hydro Dynamics and Civil
Engineering Inc. CARBO was chosen as the designer for the park after a special committee met with three firms chosen as finalists out of a larger field. CARBO is a landscape architecture firm based in Louisiana.
“One of the things that stuck with me (during discussions with CARBO) is ‘outdoor living space’ is what they see it as,” said Community Services Director Don Clark, while introducing the firm.
In order to get feedback from the community, organizers had the participants take stickers to vote on a series of six posters depicting different styles of some facets of the proposed park. The nearly 80 participants voted on types of water features, architecture styles, types of stages, amphitheater seating styles and building materials. Then, for the next section of the workshop, participants were divided into groups across 10 tables.
Each of the ten tables contained a map of the site. Under the guidance of a facilitator, each of whom is a member of the Medical Springs Park Steering Committee, teams at each table drew out a proposed map of the park and its improvements.
“We wanna dream a little bit, but also we are working with a budget,” said Clark.
Jeff Carbo, principal of CARBO, said the mapmaking portion of the meeting would yield invaluable information. That feedback would then be reflected in the firm’s next planned public workshop, scheduled for June 22.
“This will bear fruit,”
Carbo said.
Carbo said he was pleased with the turnout at the meeting.
“I’ve been at these events in bigger cities, where we only got 25 people,” Carbo said. “It shows there’s a base that cares about the community. You don’t always get that.”
“We’re encouraged by the participation,” said city Communication Manager Holland Hayden. “Citizen input is invaluable to these projects.”
The input was focused on participants choosing some of the focal points of the proposed park, in addition to making some tough decisions that would affect the feel users got while in the park.
Decisions included choosing the location of potential entry ways, whether the park should be divided in two segments or united, whether the water park should be close to the street, whether the park should be adult and serene or playful, or both, and decisions regarding sidewalks and parking.
The findings of the workshop will be posted on the city’s website, Hayden said. The timeline for the release of the feedback should be between a week and 10 days, said Carbo. The results will also be a focal point of the workshop in June, which will seek to confirm and build on feedback received Thursday.
CARBO’s design work is paid for through the Walton Foundation’s Design Excellence program, which awarded Siloam Springs a grant for the park’s design last year. The entire budget for the park is estimated to be between $2 million and $2.5 million.