New playground, turf, more parking planned for Bonney Lake park. BMX, dog park to come
Mayor Neil Johnson sees an athletic field shortage in Bonney Lake.
To fix that, the city is looking to construct a multi-sport synthetic turf field, parking area, play area and restroom facility at Allan Yorke Park at 7405 West Tapps Highway E.
“The reason this turf field is needed is because we need to have something for year-round,” Johnson said. “(We’re) trying to get away from the grass because the grass is only good for six months out of the year.”
In 2016, the City Council approved the Allan Yorke Park Master Plan, The News Tribune reported. The $24 million plan was established after the community had asked for more youth facilities in the area.
Johnson said the city is unable to execute the entire plan at once due to a lack of funds, so they split the plan into six phases. The first phase includes the turf field, parking area, play area and restroom facility.
The turf field will have markings for sports such as soccer and baseball. There will also be a bullpen and bleachers. The parking area will have about 97 stalls. The play area will have a new playground for children.
In 2017, the estimated cost for the first phase was $3.4 million. When the city held bid openings in December of this year, the cost totaled $4.8 million instead. The city only had $3.2 million set aside for the phase, Johnson said.
“That’s $1.6 million we need to take from somewhere,” Johnson said. “The council decided to table this contract for the field until the first workshop in January.”
Johnson said the city has about $8 million in surplus from sales taxes, which they can use for the first phase, but it will be up to the City Council to decide in January whether to use that for the project. If they do approve the plan in January, he said the work may be done about September or so, but that the timeline depends on factors such as construction costs next year and the availability of supplies.
Michael McCullough takes over Johnson’s mayoral seat next year.
McCullough said he is supportive of the upgrades as the park was initially built for a city of about 7,500 people. Census figures last year estimated the city’s population to be more than 22,000.
The Lake Tapps Lacrosse Club typically rents field space at Sumner Middle School. Having another field in the community would benefit the club, Lindsay Williamson, president of the Lake Tapps Lacrosse Club, said.
“Because we can get turf fields through the Sumner-Bonney Lake School District we practice through them, but it’s based on what’s available because schools are going to come first,” Williamson said.
In addition to the school district’s teams, she said, other sports groups also practice on the fields.
The lacrosse club serves about 60 children in kindergarten through eighth grade from the Enumclaw, White River, Orting, Dieringer and Sumner-Bonney Lake school districts. They practice about twice per week in the springtime, Williamson said.
“It’s been long overdue,” Williamson said, referring to plans for the turf field at Allan Yorke Park.
The other five phases of the Allan Yorke Park Master Plan include a BMX track, dog park and additional fields. Johnson said the city is focusing on the first phase for now.
“I’ve had nobody come to me and say: ‘We don’t want that,’” Johnson said. “It’s important to have that because that allows more fields on the plateau that can be utilized all the time.”
