The Town of Winamac could have its own park board in the near future. A new park board ordinance was presented for first reading during last week’s town council meeting.
Town Manager Brad Zellers says the main reason Winamac is interested in adding a park board at this time is that it would open up opportunities for grant funding that aren’t currently available. That could prove especially helpful for the town’s swimming pool rebuilding project, if the pool can be placed in the new park board’s budget, rather than the town’s General Fund.
While the town’s Code of Ordinances already includes references to a body overseeing the town’s parks, Winamac does not currently have a formal park board in place. Zellers says that creating a new ordinance gives the town the chance to make sure the park board is formed correctly and that appropriate procedures are put into place when it comes to appointing board members.
He says at this point, town officials are still making adjustments to the proposed ordinance. They still need to decide exactly how park board members would be appointed, although it’s expected that the town council would be responsible for appointing two Republicans and two Democrats. It’s also possible that the Pulaski County Public Library Board or the Eastern Pulaski School Board could have a representative on a new Winamac Park Board, according to the options provided in Indiana Code.
The town council is expected to vote on the revised ordinance at its next meeting. If it passes, the park board could be put into place soon after that.
