Crews Race To Finish Collinsville City Park Upgrades In Time For Holiday Weekend

By Craig Day, The News On 6

COLLINSVILLE, OK – Despite recent rainy weather, a Green Country Community is seeing park progress. Work is well underway on a million dollars worth of improvements at Collinsville's city park.

2/23/2010 Related Story: Collinsville City Park Getting Major Upgrades

Families are thrilled and now the race is on to finish it in time for a big celebration Independence Day weekend.

James Beeman and his family live just a block away from Collinsville's city park and go there all the time. They're excited to see so many improvements taking shape.

"It's going to be awesome," Beeman said. "I know where they'll be all summer."

"I was happy and proud," said Alex Guthrie.

There are a lot of reasons for families to be happy and proud. A new splash pad is in place. There's bright and shiny new playground equipment, new bathrooms and a skate park and basketball court. Altogether, it's a million dollars worth of improvements.

Craig Day, The News On 6: "What's going to be your favorite part about the park?"

Alex Guthrie, eight-years-old: "The skateboarding."

Craig Day, The News On 6: "You are looking forward to that?

Alex Guthrie, eight-years-old: "Yeah."

"I'm going to like the water park," said John Guthrie. "Because we used to go to one in Owasso and it was really fun."

Voters passed a 3/4 cent sales tax to pay for the park upgrades, which during a recession, says a lot about how much the park projects were needed.

"This town needed a lot, it was really needed," Beeman said. "The kids, you've got so many high school kids and kids in junior high. They don't have anything to do."

Despite recent rain, construction is 85% complete. Crews still have to put in some lighting and do some landscaping. Concrete work should be finished by early next week. They're putting in extra hours to get it all finished by a city celebration July 4th weekend.

"This is going to be awesome," Beeman said. "It will be great. We're really looking forward to it."

That same sales tax election in Collinsville included a new jail. Dirt work on that project should begin in June, with the project finished in about 150 days.