Amador County – The Jackson City Council last week discussed a possible $5 million parks and recreation grant to revitalize Oro De Amador Park.

The idea was to team with the Amador County Recreation Agency to apply for a Proposition 84 recreation grant, through the California Department of Parks & Recreation.

City Manager Mike Daly said Friday that the “maximum Prop 84 grant allocation is $5 million, and I imagine that our needs will probably max it out.” They will be looking at the grant guidelines with ACRA to try to come up with an attractive grant proposal. He said it is a very competitive application process, and ACRA would be lead agency.

Oro De Amador Park is a 160-acre property between New York Ranch Road and North Main Street, which the city acquired in December 2006. The city got the park for free from Chubb Insurance Company, which acquired it from a real estate developer in the mid-1980s, after a foreclosure.

The goal is to get Oro De Amador Park open so people can enjoy it. Daly said, being in the park with its density of trees is “like you are not even in city any more,” Teaming with ACRA on the project is “really a marvelous opportunity.”

They still have environmental issues related to soils to address before getting clearance to use the park, which is now closed to the public. The Oro De Amador Park is the tailing depository for the Kennedy Gold Mine, where the mining waste was taken to keep it from affecting water downstream from the mine.

The city has received a couple of grants to look at concentrations of contamination, primarily arsenic from the mine tailings. “There are a couple of hot spots,” Daly said, but “they are certainly overcome-able.”

Daly said the city will be working with ACRA Director Tracey Towner-Yepp to have public hearings in February and March, to get input on ideas for recreation facilities on the property.

The city has had a couple of committees looking at developing ballparks at Oro De Amador. He said the field at Detert Park is the only city ball field. Another idea was interpretive trails, or a system of trails connecting the tailing wheels, which could easily connect with the rest of town.

Daly said there have been thoughts about a skate park, and even an approved aquatic facility, though the latter would require high operational costs.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.