FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FORT
MYERS, Fla. (August 19, 2002) – The
Board of Lee County Commissioners will hold a ribbon cutting Saturday (Aug. 24)
on the second phase of North Fort Myers Community Park, which includes football
fields and a multi-purpose building at the park.
The ribbon cutting ceremony is
at 12:30 p.m. at the park, 2021 N. Tamiami Trail (Old 41), north of State Road
78/Bayshore Road and behind the North Fort Myers Library.
Commissioner Andy Coy will serve as master of ceremonies.
The $2-million project added
three football fields (two practice fields and a game field) and a multi-purpose
building that will house concessions, restrooms, storage, team rooms, covered
shade areas and a 2,000-square-foot meeting room.
The Lee County School District contributed $110,000 of the cost and the
rest is coming from community park impact fees.
The fields will be used primarily by the North Fort Myers Junior Football Association (Pop Warner). The multi-purpose building will provide a place for community gatherings and organizations to meet. Wilson Miller Inc. designed the improvements and Compass Construction was the construction manager.
The
first phase of North Fort Myers Community Park was completed in 1996.
The park currently has four, lighted
baseball fields, 24 shuffleboard courts, a big playground, pavilion, disc golf,
and a horseshoe court. The
shuffleboard courts were completed in 1999 and are home to the Lee County
Shuffleboard Club.
Lee County’s Parks &
Recreation Department maintains and operates 3,500 acres of developed park land,
14 centers, 9 pools, five boat ramps, three Gulf beach parks, one lakefront
beach, 76 beach accesses, 60 tennis courts, 73 ballfields, and 13 preserves. The department also manages the more than 7,500 acres of
environmentally sensitive lands the county has purchased in the last five years
through its Conservation 2020 Program. Its
fiscal year 2002 operating budget is $16.2 million.
The Parks System gained national accreditation last year and is a 2002 National Gold Medal Award Finalist.