Politics & Government
City Council discusses park updates; renews winter ice rink contract
Matt Hemmert | Lehi Free Press
The Lehi City Council met on July 23, and the common theme was public parks and associated amenities.
During the citizen input portion of the regular session, Lehi resident Chris Brown raised concerns about Holbrook Farms Park. “We had [discussions about] two or three years ago, and it was [about] the design of the Holbrook Farms Park. […] The bottom line is, I have never seen a park worse than the Holbrook Farms Park and the city should be very displeased with the performance of the contractor that designed it and constructed it,” Brown said. He specifically mentioned the last-minutechange to the park plan to swap usable landscaped portions to native grasses.
Lehi City Parks and Facilities Manager, Steven Marchbanks,explained that the city has not yet accepted ownership of the completed park and that the native grass needs to be revegetated. He further explained that such revegetation will take about three years, which will include landscaping remediation to remove thistle and broadleaf weeds from the native grass sections.
Councilmember Paige Albrecht, along with Brown, voiced concerns about the safety of the play structures in the park. Marchbanks responded that certain play structure elements were intended for different age groups and that signs needed to be installed to help explain safe use of the playgrounds. Marchbanks also said that the city is planning a grand opening of Holbrook Farms Park around Labor Day.
The Council also approved a resolution to approve further construction of the temporary ice rink at the Lehi Sports Complex. Marchbanks explained that this will expand the ice surface to around one-half the size of a standard hockey rink and that the only constraint to further expansion is power needed for refrigeration slabs.
Additionally, the Council approved the construction of pickleball courts at Shadow Ridge Park. The construction will be funded with impact fees and not tax funds. This construction will add another venue in the city as the popularity of pickleballcontinues to grow.
Other items approved by the Council were a contract for concrete removal and replacement, an amendment to the plat for Gardner Point, and a change to the Thanksgiving Point area plan to allow for automotive repair as permitted use in a commercial zone.
