Lakes of the Four Seasons Little League
Lakes of the Four Seasons
Crown Point, Indiana
Lions Club
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Lions Club Walking Path
Lions Park recreation path asset to community-Paved half-mile path offers safe choice to joggers, bikers, skaters
The new asphalt recreation path recently completed in Lions Park on Four
Seasons’ west side offers residents a safe, well-designed recreation
alternative.
The new community amenity is just another improvement to the nearly 20-year-old
park that will be funded by the LOFS Lions Club, a community service
organization active in Four Seasons and the surrounding community.
“Five years ago we installed water and lights and began fixing the park’s
drainage,” said Tom Hansen, a nine-year member who also is on the club’s
park committee. “We had a plan and this trail was a part of it.”
Hansen said since the opening of the 117th Street gate, Kingsway Drive has
become one of the busiest in the community. Hansen said walking or jogging on
streets, especially after dark, can be a safety hazard.
The nearly half-mile circuit is eight feet wide and will be marked for traveling
lanes in opposite directions for visibility reasons. Boarders, bladers, and
bikers will travel one direction, while walkers and joggers will navigate the
other way.
Hansen said the Lions plan to work with local health experts to provide exercise
information stops and markings along the winding path. The eight-foot width will
make the path easier for the maintenance department to plow in winter.
The ambitious $25,000 project wouldn’t have been possible without “help”
from some Lions friends. John Curley, Winfield Township Trustee/Assessor, gave
the project a kick start with a significant donation last fall.
Hansen approached Curley and Nick Gasparovic, who is on the township board,
about participating in the project in October when the club installed $9,000
worth of playground equipment in the park. Both were enthusiastic about helping
and the funds got the project off the “back burner,” Hansen said.
Curley said the donation will serve Four Seasons residents, who are a “big
part” of the township’s tax base, and be a highly-used addition to the
township’s parks program. Curley said the township maintains a small park in
Palmer and will assist Stoney Run residents with equipment and maintenance once
the developer has donated a parcel for a park.
“I think the path is a good idea because I have to dodge cars sometimes when I
walk my dog in the morning,” said LOFS resident Curley.
The Lions also received an assist from another resident, Kurt Whitehead, who
owns Whitehead Masonry. At a savings of around $5,000, Whitehead used his
personnel and equipment to excavate the park path.
Project costs also were reduced by coordinating paving with the POA paving
program. The club was able to receive volume pricing from Boyd Asphalt of
Valparaiso but had to wait to get the work done in mid-July. Hansen said the
club also received some funding from Lions International.
“When we got the go-ahead on the project from the POA Board early this spring,
club members couldn’t believe we were that close,” Hansen said. "Board
members were very appreciative and asked what they could do to help."