The Holbrook City Council meeting held Wednesday, April 10, the council discussed the potential of moving forward with revisiting the idea of a proposed community park and pond.
The idea of the park was proposed by Interim Manager Randy Sullivan in 2017 to be developed on donated land located north of Hopi Drive and west of 13th Avenue on the west end of town. If developed, the site would include a fishing pond, amphitheater, walking paths, and more. Stantec Engineering, an international firm, provided a study on the potential park at no cost, including an artist’s rendition and data for the area. When city management changed hands in 2019, the idea was removed from consideration. Now that the city is under a different administration, the concept has resurfaced.
Mayor Kathleen Smith explained that she requested this be on the agenda due to citizens communicating renewed interest in the idea and Stantec agreed to move forward on further scoping of the project if there was council and community interest.
Sullivan explained upfront about potential barriers that he believed may come up but could be overcome stating, “There will be some water quality issues that we will have to work through. One of the big things that a lot of people will say is the mosquitoes. But we have water out there right now causing mosquito problems.” Sullivan stated an option for mitigating the issue would include the depth of water and water flow to prevent eggs from being laid.
Sullivan listed more potential issues and ways issues could be solved. “I’m pretty confident we could work out a lot of those details.” He also believes most of the funding for this project could be provided through grants and even Stantec.
When asked about maintenance, Sullivan stated that he believed the necessary staffing to maintain such a park would be minimal, requiring maybe one or two additional city employees.
Councilwoman Arcenia Pacheco asked to see the feasibility report and questioned if the water would be safe enough for swimming or drinking. It was explained that recreational was a different quality standard than drinking water and could be discussed with more planning. “Quite frankly, we may get to a point where we realize the recreational water isn’t going to be that good enough. And we may have to ditch it and make it just fishing or something like that. Those are some of the details we’d have to work out,” Sullivan stated.
Pacheco also questioned why there was drainage water there now, which Sullivan explained was due to neglect of the drainage by both the city and Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), which is a project on their list to get done before the upcoming monsoon season.
She also noted that in a previous Stantec study it stated that the lake would require a liner due to the soil not being ideal and if that would still be needed. Sullivan explained that samples showed that the ground could either be mixed with other components or a liner to make the soil able to retain water.
Pacheco also had concerns of the water being polluted by the nearby roads, to which Sullivan explained an option could be vegetation that can naturally filter the water, but added that more studies and analysis to find a thorough solution. Vice Mayor Michael Nilsson added to that conversation, stating there are many ways to solve things, even water quality, with natural solutions.
Pacheco also had concerns with transients sleeping in the area, potential criminal damage and even children drowning. All of which with proper education and enforcement, could be mitigated.
Councilmember Robert Black stated his endorsement for the idea, stating “We’re going to have problems. But we can overcome those problems as we go.”
Sullivan clarified that this is just to look deeper into the feasibility of the project as well as garner support, stating, “It may not happen. We may get to the water quality, and it may not pass ADEQ (Arizona Department of Environmental Quality) standards. It may not pass Water Resources.”
Mayor Smith clarified that it was not at a point where decisions of whether or not to build the park was on the table. “Basically, we’re looking for consent to give permission to the administration to look into it further to answer the concerns and the questions that are there, and then come back to us,” she said.
Councilmember Black then made a motion to go forward with the idea, which was approved unanimously by council.
Resident Tyler Myers spoke during call to the public, stating that he knew conversations of creating pond were held in the past, but were paused for some reason he was unaware of. He explained that he and a small group of individuals were able to visit with Mayor Smith and discuss the things they think would improve the city. Although many topics were discussed, regarding things for kids, teens and adults to do, Myer stated creating a pond had a positive consensus from the group. “I ended up asking people all over town this past week, if they would like the pond or not,” he said, listing the names of six local families with children that he had spoken to, adding they were all in agreement and expressed excitement for the idea.
“They wanted a place where they could push a stroller, and walking around a pond would be one of the aspects that takes care of that. Not only that, there’s going to be a playground, a little playset at the pond, that’s going to take care of the little kids. They said there’s going to be aspects for canoes and kayaks and fishing, that’s going to take care of the teenagers, that takes care of the older individuals. There’s going to be an amphitheater at the pond. At the amphitheater we all know, and no offense to the older individuals, but older individuals just love to sit and listen to music. This takes care of not just one group, but all aspects of Holbrook.”
Myers concluded by stating that Holbrook hasn’t seen anything new for a long time and he believes it could give pride and hope to the community, adding “There’s so much that can happen if this pond goes through.”
Resident Debbie Shumway also voiced her support for a pond and park. “This is a huge idea, I understand that. And I know there’s a lot of viable issues that have to be addressed in order to make this happen. But I think it deserves our efforts.” She shared her vision of what could be if the pond was created, which included concerts, picnics and community gatherings that could be held there. “If there is anything my family can do, we would support helping in any way we can to see it happen.”
During Call to the Public for non-agenda items, Mark Romo thanked the city for providing lighting at the Holbrook Little League field, which according to Romo has been without since its beginnings 72 years ago. “I wanted to come here on behalf of the Little League to thank the City of Holbrook, the council, in particular the Mayor, Randy and his team for all the efforts that you guys have done on behalf of our kids.” Romo stated they estimate that close to 5,000 kids have participated in little league over the years and it’s a meaningful endeavor. “With these lights, we’ll be able to host district-wide tournaments, where we’ll have teams coming from out of town. I do think that it’s going to be a really nice economic engine for Holbrook in the future.”
Also addressing the council was resident Frances Gurule who stated her water bill had increased from $87 to $199 and wasn’t sure as to why, asking if there was a way for the city to see if an error was made. Mayor Smith directed staff to look into her concerns.
The council received a brief overview of the 2024-2025 fiscal year budget by Manager Sullivan. He noted some increases in administration and parks personnel to ensure wages were covered. “Some of the major things in here are going to be some capital items.” Some capital items listed were a firetruck, several new trucks for city maintenance, airport repaving and a $175,000 grant match for meters. “Other than that, quite a few of the numbers have stayed the same.” Sullivan added that things may change if the expenditure limitations don’t pass in the upcoming May election, which would hold the city to the state’s mandated limit. “These numbers are based off of it passing,” explaining things could be cut if the limitation doesn’t pass. Mayor Smith noted in two weeks the council will have a work session that will go into more depth on the budget.
The council held a first reading for a proposed ordinance for a city code change to Chapter 8, the floodplain chapter. The Planning and Zoning Commission recommends adopting the suggested changes, which are highly suggest by the Arizona Department of Water Resources. Sullivan explained most of the changes are in the verbiage of the chapter and to align with the Arizona Department of Water Resources statutes.
Mayor Smith proclaimed April 13, as John Barrow Day, “In recognition of his extraordinary contributions, unwavering dedication and lasting impact on the city of Holbrook.” She also proclaimed April as Fair Housing Month.
The council entered into executive session to finalize the number of candidates selected as finalists for the city manager positions. Five individuals were selected but their names were not available as of this writing.
During summary of current events, Mayor Smith noted that Debbie Shumway is hoping to beautify the city and is looking for flowerpot donations. Smith also mentioned that on April 29, a community event called Happy Holbrook Hullaballoo will be happening from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Hunt Park and encouraged everyone to attend for free hotdogs and games.
Smith added that the Holbrook Chamber of Commerce is hosting a clean-up day from 8 a.m. until 12 noon on April 20, starting at the historic courthouse museum.
