City, park board considers moving RV park to Kelly park

A task force is being formed to consider a new location for Red Oak’s recreational vehicle campsite.

Park and Tree Board members discussed at their meeting Thursday a preliminary proposal to move the campsite from its current Legion Park location to Kelly Park.

City Administrator Brad Wright said exact details on the proposal have not been determined yet, as the focus currently rests on the location of the campsite. However, he reported to the Council he estimates there will be five new sites equipped with 30 and 50 amp breakers for electrical hookups as well as water.

“Everyone is pretty much in agreement we need to get the campsite off Legion Park,” Park Board President Rev. George Hooper said. “Kelly Park seems like the best place for it.”

However, the exact location in Kelly Park is still being debated.

With an initial proposal of locating the campsite near the ball field, park board members suggested locating it on the north end, near the shelter and restroom. Rev. Hooper said that location would be closer to utility hookups and thus less expensive to build, and would be more accessible from the road.

Mayor Ted Schoonover will appoint residents to the task force to consider the various options, and present their suggestions to the council and park board for further review.

“This is something we want to take our time on and have something nice so we don’t look back and say ‘oh, we should have done it this way,’” Wright said.

The discussion on relocating the campsite began about four months ago when the city decided to close the sewer dump at Legion Park. That decision stemmed from several instances of the sewer backing up due to a large amount of rocks and debris being dumped into the sewer.

While plans call for a new sewer dump to be added to Kelly Park, the more remote location should help curtail the amount of miscellaneous debris being dumped into it.

Regardless, Wright said the city may not entirely close Legion Park to RV camping, even if a new one is built at Kelly.

“We might decide to give people a couple options,” he said.