In June 2023, several community members came together with a vision of putting up a pickleball court in St. Francis. Pickleball is a game that combines the games of tennis, badminton, and ping pong and is becoming a very popular sport. When trying to decide where the location should be, one thing was clear - the old swimming pool would make a great location. Scott Dankenbring took his time in creating the vision that the members of the committee had expressed interest in having: pickleball, sand volleyball, horseshoes, cornhole, a walking path, and fitness stations. This park would be something that would encourage young and old alike to get active and get outside. In July, members presented the vision to the St. Francis City Council and received their blessing to begin the process of trying to get funding for this project.

One of the necessary steps was to come up with a name for the park so funds could be designated. Since the block is designed as a triangle, and is located on "Angle Road", the committee decided that this would be a good name for the park. You may have seen the logo and the acronym TAP on their parade float, both representative of Tri-Angle Park.

By now, you are probably asking yourself "How are they planning on funding this? Will this be something else going on our taxes?" The answer is NO! They are hoping to receive private donations and grant funds to be able to finance this lofty endeavor. Once complete, the city will take up the care and maintenance of the park.

The project will have to be done in phases: Phase 1 - Demolition/removal of pool/pump house and earthwork, Phase 2 - Cement/Courts/Electrical, and Phase 3 - Fencing, Sand, Equipment, Re-working current bathhouse to have ADA compliant bathrooms available. The committee is currently in the process of seeking bids for demolition and would like to have that phase completed by December. Is this goal attainable? We simply don't know! We have received a pledge from the St. Francis Recreation Commission for $5,000 to begin the earning process and have begun applying for grants. We believe the overall cost of this park will be somewhere between $400,000-500,000.

If you would like to donate, please contact a committee member. Committee members are Dara Carmichael, Kelli Dankenbring, Scott Dankenbring, Susan Dinkel, Tye Faulkender, Allison Grice, Tammy Grice, Holly Hingst, Carla Lampe, Marlo Parsons, Ashley Raile, Aspen Bracelin, and Scott Schultz. Larger pictures of the conceptual park design can be seen at various businesses throughout the community. Keep checking back for the latest updates on this journey!