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Updated 10 hours ago
Oakmont officials said they need more time to ponder two proposed recreational projects in the borough.
Approval of the Friends of the Riverfront's kayak park and Oakmont recreation board's trail lighting for Riverside Park will not be on the agenda for Monday's council meeting, borough Manager Lisa Cooper Jensen said.
“We want to make a good decision, not just a fast one,” Councilman Tim Favo said at workshop last week.
There have been public discussions about both proposals in recent months, including a presentation by A.J. Schwartz of the Pittsburgh architectural firm Environmental Planning and Design, which is designing the kayak park. The facility would be on a borough-owned, 1.53-acre lot along the 1000 block of Allegheny Avenue, near the Brenntag Northeast facility.
The park would serve as a launching point for kayaks, canoes, paddle boats and other nonmotorized watercraft into the Allegheny River and an access point to the Three Rivers Water Trail.
The Water Trail has 23 access points on the Allegheny, Monongahela, Ohio and Youghiogheny rivers. All are public, free to use and require no registration or launch permit.
Schwartz said there would be five parking spaces, a 15-foot gravel entrance and about a 550-foot winding path to the river.
Several residents expressed concern about trash being scattered about and safety issues at the site.
“We need more detailed accurate information,” Councilman Thomas Whalen said.
Jensen said the borough will form an ad hoc committee with officials from Oakmont, Friends of the Riverfront, the architects and residents to develop a consensus on park design, a cost estimate and funding allocations before the proposal returns to council for approval.
Recreation board Chairman Tom Bland made a pitch to council on Jan. 3 to put 20 LED lights on 10-foot poles around the perimeter of Riverside Park, near Riverview High School. A majority of the lights would be in the lower end of the park near the pavilions and tennis and basketball courts. Bland was scheduled to make another presentation at last month's regular meeting, but decided to pull it from the agenda.
The park is open from dawn to dusk, but that may change if lights can be installed. “A lot more discussion on park hours has to be done before we can do that,” Jensen said about the project. Both projects would be funded through grants, with matching funds from the borough.
Michael DiVittorio is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-871-2367 or mdivittorio@tribweb.com.
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