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Compromises unveiled in proposed City-Brooks Park Master Plan
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BATON ROUGE — BREC held multiple meetings and surveys, getting feedback from the community about what they'd like to see improved at City-Brooks Park.
"Sasaki's job was to take all of that information, and feedback that was given in the community, all of those voices that had the time to speak their peace, and try to bring it into the most comprehensive plan possible, and say we believe this is the mixture of all of those things," BREC Superintendent Brooks Williams said.
Monday afternoon, design firm Sasaki Associates presented that plan, which keeps some of the proposed adjustments in the "Big Loop", "The Stitch," and the "McMakin Plan", while also taking into account high-ranked areas given in community feedback.
The proposed preferred master plan will increase the mileage of pathways connecting the park to the lakes and surrounding neighborhoods from 4 miles to nearly 7 miles. The number of parking spaces would increase from 287 to 600.
The proposed plan also creates what Sasaki calls a safer park and golf course, cutting the number of areas at risk of ball strike from 8 to 2, and keeps the course a 32-par but chops about 220 yards off the space, which is less than the other designs proposed in those plans; the golf course was trimmed from 2300 yards to 1900 yards.
"I think you see a preservation of golf, and I think you see it exist as its par-3 course like it does; there are some minor changes as you go through it, but there are also improvements that are coming with those changes," Williams said.
Last month, State Representative Dixon McMakin proposed the "McMakin plan," which kept the golf course whole with improvements, renovated the Brooks pool, and added a 400-meter track and field, some of which are included in the proposed preferred master plan.
"I still think room for improvement on this plan. Why we are moving East Lakeshore to take up hole number 4 green? Why are we not fully one-waying East Lakeshore as well, and then focusing first on West of Dalrymple, the Brooks Park, the dog park, and those areas and knock knock," McMakin said.
The proposed enhancements are expected to be constructed in six different phases, with a price tag between $75 and $125 million.
The next public meeting for the proposal will be September 17th. The BREC Commission will have final approval.
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