Apr 2, 2024 By Karen Mansfield 2 min read

Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter

Washington Township park will close April 1 for a major construction project

Washington Township Park in Greene County will be closed starting April 1, while a major construction project is completed.

The park will remain closed for about two months during renovations.

The township was recently awarded an $86,985 grant from the DCNR Community Conservation Partnerships Program (C2P2) for improvements to the community park, including upgrades to bring the park into further compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

According to Walt Stout, chairman of the Washington Township Board of Supervisors, the project will include the widening of the popular walking trail by excavating three additional feet around its entire length to increase the overall width from the five feet to eight feet. A new asphalt overlay will be placed over the entire trail.

Also included in the project is the extension of the paved walkways from the walking trail to the basketball court, the creation of a paved, dedicated wheelchair space at each set of spectator bleachers, additional walkways from the existing bleachers to the playing fields, and finally, an additional designated ADA parking space for direct access to the park comfort facilities.

Supervisor Charles Hickman noted that the playing fields at the park are often used to provide a landing zone for medical helicopters. Accessing the landing zone with emergency vehicles and equipment requires the crossing of the bituminous paved walking trail. To eliminate damage to the trail surface, a 12-foot-wide concrete driveway will be built across the walking trail for the emergency vehicles to use to access the landing zone.

Raffle Construction of Ruffs Dale is the general contractor for the project.

EQT Production Company has contributed toward the cash match required by the DCNR grant.