New Prague City Council ponders future of athletic facilities

The New Prague City Council recently reviewed the needs for future athletic facilities and the outdoor pool. The council began the conversation at its Tuesday, Jan. 19, meeting and decided to continue it in February.

The council’s discussion on athletic facilities centered on outdoor fields, specifically for baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse and other sports. It was noted the city and the New Prague Area School District should work together on providing athletic fields so there would not be duplication.

City Administrator Mike Johnson said he had contacted Superintendent Tim Dittberner, who would talk with the New Prague Area School Board about the fields.

Questions raised were what age groups would the athletic facilities be for and how many teams could they accommodate? Would the facilities be based on the population within the city or school district? Currently residents from the rural area come in to use the city’s athletic fields.

Mayor Chuck Nickolay said the city is using some of the school district’s facilities and they were using some of the city’s.

Council member Shawn Ryan asked if there weren’t some new soccer fields being added. City Planning Director Ken Ondich replied that three are being added to Settlers Park, in the southeast area of the community.

Outdoor Pool Also discussed was the outdoor pool and the possibility of starting a committee to consider its future.

When the city did a survey on the outdoor pool in 2014 there were....

To see more on this story pick up the January 28, 2016 print edition of The New Prague Times.