InTucker Magazine

Ask Rip – August 2021

Rip Robertson is the Parks and Recreation Director for the City of Tucker.

I’m writing this month about one of the topics I get the most questions about, and likely will continue to get more questions about in the coming months: the renovation project at Fitzgerald Park. I want to start with some background.

The City acquired Fitzgerald Park from the Tucker Football League Trust in 2019 with an assurance of improvements to the park and facilities. The City immediately began discussing how this new asset could be improved to aid the City’s growing Parks and Recreation Department. The City began working on plans to create a sports complex that is as state-of-the-art and functional as is feasible. As part of the plan, the City completed studies for fit/location, economic impact and design and engineering to assist in the planning process. The present plan helps the City create a space that will not only accommodate a number of different sporting opportunities, but also host city/community events and activities. The current plan could also accommodate some of our local high school events and activities.

The plan for this project is to renovate the existing park and not change its current use nor capacity. Many of the events and activities being discussed can currently be held at the park, but we delayed implementing most due to the conditions of the fields and facilities. The new single field will actually decrease overall capacity from the existing fields. For many remembering Tucker Football League’s heyday (late 1970s to early 2000s), they normally had 500 football players and 200 cheerleaders, with games during the week and on weekends. They operated at nearly full capacity (more than 2,000) during those years. With the new facilities and field, we do anticipate increased programing at Fitzgerald with community events, possibly adding new youth sports opportunities and upgrading the other fields to assist in the growth of our newly formed baseball program.

A newly renovated field and bathrooms are not the only plans for this exciting new addition to our city. With improved accessibility and maintenance of the park, there are other improvements in store in the future. These include playgrounds, adult activity features and a walking loop.

We have received several specific questions about the new project at Fitzgerald and I would like to answer some of them for you:  

What is the plan concerning new sound and lighting in the park? 
The City has an existing noise level ordinance. That will be enforced strictly. There is also a policy restricting times for games and events in our parks. There is existing lighting and sound used during games and events in most of our parks. The plan for Fitzgerald Park has high quality, state-of-the-art lights and sound. The current orientation of the main field is east and west, which opens the endzones to the neighborhoods. The newly renovated field will be oriented north and south and, with bleachers on either side and restroom facilities planned, this will channel sound toward Lawrenceville Highway and away from the neighborhoods. The new LED lighting is designed to minimize “light spillage” and direct high-quality light onto the playing surface, decreasing levels in the neighborhoods.

What is the plan to handle the increase in traffic into and out of the facility?
Traffic will remain consistent with existing traffic due to no change in capacity or usage. We have had numerous large games and activities at Fitzgerald in the past few years that have shown ingress and egress to be normal for this type of park/facility. If the need arises, our partners at the DeKalb County Police Department will be on site and can be used for traffic control. Presently, P.D. is required at all games and most large events and activities. This presence is paid for by those conducting the games/events/activities.

How will the maintenance costs be impacted by these renovations? 
Park maintenance is always something we consider when making any proposals to add or improve parks and facilities. The annual maintenance costs could potentially decrease with new facilities, infrastructure and fields. Currently we have direct costs for repairing and maintaining old, outdated facilities, infrastructure repairs and maintenance, turf maintenance on two fields, and time costs for staff at this park. By reducing the number of fields and the possibility of installing artificial turf, and with new facilities and infrastructure, we anticipate maintenance costs being consistent with current funding levels.

What about trash/litter in the park? 
Litter in our parks is always a concern. As we do presently, user groups will be responsible for trash pickup and removal, and our current policy of park maintenance will continue. We have maintenance staff that monitor parks daily, weekly and monthly for issues and address them.

How will these park improvements affect home/property values in the area? 
This park has been in its current configuration and usage since the early 1970s and, with usage not changing, I anticipate the park improvements will be similar to any other investment made in the parks. Improvements to existing parks, and addition of parks to communities, do not harm, but actually improve home value and desirability. 

Thanks for listening, and I hope to see you out at Fitzgerald when this project is complete.