FINDLAY, Ohio — Leaders in Findlay are discussing spending millions on a new city park, but some are questioning if it's worth the money.
The proposed Downtown Recreation Area project in Findlay is estimated to cost the Flag City up to $30 million to create an open-air civic center.
"To make something unique that is going to draw individuals, both visitors and citizens alike, to visit our downtown," Findlay Mayor Christina Muryn said of the project. "That then feeds into our other parks. I feel this is an opportunity to make something special and complimentary to our existing amenities."
Muryn says the cost is only an estimate for getting everything on the wishlist, and two-thirds of that would come from corporate donations and state or federal grants.
"I don't expect the city of Findlay to put more than $10 million in it over multiple years," she said. "But hopefully, we're able to whittle it down, get what we want and spend even less than that."
Service Safety Director Rob Martin says city administration has heard critics say the city doesn't maintain its current 19 parks, and shouldn't use taxpayer money to build a new one. But over the last 10 years, he says the city has invested thousands of dollars into upgrades and it costs much less to maintain existing parks than building a new one.
He said the idea of a new park taking away funding from the existing park funding is incorrect.
"That's not the case. We actually do budget for routine maintenance as well as opportunities to improve or enhance or even replace current equipment that's there," Martin said.
Findlay City Council has tabled the decision on the new park until a third round of environmental studies can be completed.
Then, work can begin on plans to fund the project which would run alongside the second phase of river benching flood mitigation," Muryn said.
"Do we do it all at one time, do we phase it, do people want to donate because something means more to them than another item? We'll work through that," Muryn said.