Lincoln Receives Fun Park Grant

City Awaiting Letter On How To Proceed With Park

LINCOLN — Gov. Mike Beebe informed the city of Lincoln last week it had received a fun park grant for $45,000.

Rhonda Hulse, grant administrator for the city, said a park will be built on property the city owns on North Street near Lincoln Gardens Senior Center.

“We were glad to get this grant,” Hulse said. “We were only 10 out of the state to receive these funds.”

The grant is through Arkansas Parks and Tourism, according to Hulse. It will be used to build a basketball court, a pavilion, permanently placed grills, and include playground equipment.

“We’ll have a whole set of playground equipment and it will be the real nice equipment,” Hulse said. “The pavilion will have picnic tables and be for families or parents who want some shade while their

kids play. And there will be fencing around the park.”

Hulse said the grant will require 11 parking spaces to be available at the park.

“The grant will be for three-fourths of the cost,” Hulse said. “The city will incur some costs like the dirt work, which our employees can help do. We hope local businesses will bid on projects, so we can help our business people.”

Hulse said, looking to the future, the city would like to get another grant to build a walking trail at the park.

This grant is not the first the city has received, nor the first Hulse has written for the city. Since 2010, Lincoln has received $128,122 in grants.

The South Park Walking Trail was funding by a $16,550 grant in 2010. Also that year the batting cage for City Athletic Park was funded by a $14,975 grant. In 2011, the city received a $30,818 grant for a new police vehicle with a video surveillance system. Last year A $3,000 grant helped the city put up foul ball netting at the Athletic Park, provide about half of the cost, $14,237, for a rescue boat and a $4,200 grant help with a police computer systems upgrade for the police department.

This is the first grant for 2013 but Hulse will be applying for other grants to help the city.

Hulse said she received training in writing grants when she went to work for Washington County as assistant grant administrator after having worked for the city of Lincoln from 1999 to 2006.

“That’s where I learned what I know — from Wayne Blakenship, the Washington County grant administrator.

Hulse applied for the grants Lincoln received in 2010, although she didn’t work for the city at the time.

“Of course I didn’t charge them,” Hulse said. “I just wanted to help the city.”

Hulse returned to work for the city in March 2011, bringing the grant writing knowledge with her to help the city receive additional grant funds.

Hulse said work on the fun park won’t commence until a letter is received on how to proceed.