The Clarkdale Town Council voted unanimously Oct. 12 to approve an increase in the Land and Water Conservation Fund grant from $500,000 to $1 million, which included an approval to apply for the Heritage Fund Grant of $500,000.
The expectant approval of these grants marks the continued effort by the Clarkdale Town Council to revamp the Selna Mongini Park. The park has seen increased use as people begin venturing back into the community.
“Thirty or 35 years ago I used to play softball there,” said long-time Clarkdale resident Kerrie Snyder, reminiscing about the now-dilapidated public park on the corner of Main Street and North Broadway in Clarkdale. “It was a really popular field in the summertime back then.”
If the application for the increase to the LWCF is approved, the town must match the approved amount by 50%. With the increased funding amount, though, the Heritage Fund Grant of $500,000 could be used to fill this criteria.
The park is split into two sections — the 1.66 acres of Selna ballfield sitting on the corner of Broadway and Second North Street, which was deeded to the town in 1977, and a smaller section directly below the ballpark.
The lower section of the park is leased by the town in exchange for payment of the Yavapai County annual property taxes, with the condition that the town shall be solely responsible for improvements and the construction of recreational facilities on the property.
The two bordering properties combined are referred to as Selna Mongini Park, but due to grant regulations, the town can only use grant money to fund projects on the section of property owned by the town of Clarkdale.
This stipulation creates difficulties when gathering funding for the park, which is in desperate need of improved landscaping. The ballfield has not been used in an official capacity since the fall of 2016.
In December 2017, Freeport-McMoRan, the mining company, conducted soil testing of the area, and the results showed that remediation needs to take place on both parcels of land.
Since then, the town of Clarkdale has been asking for community input regarding what to do with Selna Mongini Park.
For now, the town is bound by the commitment to remediate the soil before or during the development of any other major projects on the land.
Joni Westcott, the Parks and Recreation manager for the town of Clarkdale, said the department is very close to a final plan for the project, but that the grant regulations and necessity for soil remediation slowed down the process.
“For grant purposes, we aren’t allowed to develop property not owned by the Town,” Westcott said. “The soil remediation program was part of the reason we were looking at the park …. We didn’t have the funds to be able to complete the project, and our original master plan has changed, mostly because of property ownership.”
Westcott said the community may not see any progress on the project until a year from now in the fall, as the town is still working on implementing the information collected from its 2020 community survey and working closely with a landscape architect to create a finalized plan that will best serve the community of Clarkdale.
