KENT, Conn.—The Parks and Recreation Commission will receive the master plan for Emery Park that is being created by Cardinal Engineering during its September meeting.
Recreation Department Director Matt Frasher told the commission recently that Cardinal has scrubbed Phase 2 of its assessment of the deteriorating swimming area and will address the pool’s needs with the engineer at a later date.
He said Phase 2, which would have entailed removing some of the masonry surface that coats the walls of the swimming area to see how stable the substrata behind it is, it would have required “significant permitting,” Frasher said. That would have pushed work past the timeframe for use of ARPA funds. “It couldn’t be done by volunteers and would have required a sealed bid process,” he said.
Finally, Cardinal feared that if it sank test holes, it could collapse a wall or worsen the condition of the pool. “It really lengthens what we are doing, so they chose to forego it for right now and do it later with the engineer,” he said.
What Parks and Rec will receive in September will be a master plan for all the other elements the commission would like to see at Emery and Cardinal’s best estimate of the needs of the pool.
Looking at other capital projects, the commissioners decided that they would establish a subcommittee in late fall to assess what is needed to create pickleball courts in the community. A delegation of residents attended the commission’s July meeting to urge construction of designated courts to answer the surge in the number of residents who want to play the sport, said to be the fastest growing in the nation.
Frasher said that he had two informal cost estimates of $200,000 and up to $500,000 to create courts. “We need to explore that further,” he said. He also reported that the Board of Selectmen were not in favor of moving money included in the capital plan to pre-fund construction.
“We need a subcommittee to decide what we are really looking for,” said member Heidi Wilson. “It’s not just plopping in a court. Do we want one court or three? Where is the handicap parking? Do we want night lighting? The tennis courts are not in good condition—maybe we demolish them and put in a whole court. What does it look like in our park? There are all these questions and we’re not going to get funding from the town until we know.”
Attention turned to the long-planned boat access point to the Housatonic River from behind the elementary school. Frasher said he heard a rumor that the Board of Education had vetoed access from its parking lot, but conversations with Principal Michell Mott and Board of Education Chair Heather Brand failed to confirm that. “Neither one knew of that vote,” he said. “We need a deep dive [into the records] to see if it’s true.”
He said discussions are needed with the school board to align the project with the school’s safety plan and added that a matching Department of Energy and Environmental Protection grant is available that would pay for preliminary engineering and environmental studies.
There is a Sept. 18 deadline for application, which he termed a “small window of opportunity.” He will discuss applying with Town Treasurer Barbara Herbst and First Selectman Eric Epstein before the September meeting.
Jennifer Murphy asked about any action being taken on establishing a dog park in town. Members explained that the issue had come before the commission in 2024 and had been referred back to the group interested in its creation for suggestions.
She was told that the commission did not prioritize it because there were more pressing issues that mattered to larger portions of the town’s population.
“The most viable location is Kent Commons, but the size of the park is small, which makes it much more challenging,” said Frasher. “There is land Kent Center School leases from Kent School, but we would need permission from Kent School, and it would be inaccessible during school hours. And at Emery Park we only have about three acres for recreation.”
Wilson noted that the local dog warden recommended against a park because of health concerns.
“We don’t have the infrastructure for a dog park right now,” Frasher concluded.
Murphy argued that dog parks allow for socialization of the animals “and it’s also good for people to get together.” She asked if there was an active group working on the concept, but no information was available.
