Mountain View Park is among the busiest and most used areas in Clinton County, especially from early spring through mid-fall, but like most other areas in the local region, a lot of activity is temporarily on hold due to the COVID-19 virus that is sweeping the world.

The Recreation/Park Board, in its first ever cell phone conference group meeting last Thursday, March 26, addressed several of the safety concerns and recent state and local emergency orders now in place and the effect it will have on the park for an unknown period of time.

The park, despite the coronavirus scare, will continue to be open, but on a much smaller scale until further notice, and will continue to keep sanctions already in place and abide by rules set forth in state and local mandates for park facilities.

These decisions were made during last week’s meeting which saw 10 of 14 active members participate in the phone conference, as discussion and votes were taken.

In anticipation of reopening the park for full activities hopefully in the near future, the board also continued to discuss general business and needed maintenance, while keeping the park open to as many patrons as possible.

The park will remain open to visitors, especially those individuals using the walking track, but there are several guidelines visitors are asked to follow for safety reasons, and some closures of some parts of the park are currently in place.

The board, during its one and a-half-hour session, discussed the COVID-19 concerns, as they pertain to the park, at length.

Also, at one point during the meeting, board member Todd Messer made a phone call to County Judge/Executive Ricky Craig to get some input on the issues as well.

The only change since the last closure announcements include the closure of the basketball courts for use by the public.

Also, the board again voted to close the main entrance park gate at night by a unanimous vote. Effective last Friday night, March 27, the gate is to be locked from 11 p.m. and reopened the following morning at 4 a.m. The board was asking for the city police department personnel to assist on keeping the gates locked during that period.

There had been a discussion of possibly keeping the main gate locked at all times and only allowing foot traffic, but some members felt that may lead to more vandalism.

Also closed to patrons until further notice is the park shelter and Farmer’s Market, as no rentals are being taken and no group gatherings are allowed. The same goes for the playground area, which also could have several groups in the area at one time, thus causing safety concerns.

Those who use the facility are also strongly encouraged to follow the safety precautions set forth in the governor’s emergency declaration, which requires spacing of six feet between people and no large gatherings of 10 of more people.

Although all sporting events that would have normally been held during the spring months at the park have been cancelled, Youth League officials have indicated they may attempt to have a baseball and softball season later in the year, possibly some type of fall league for youth.

Needed repairs and improvement at the park will also continue through the weeks ahead.

It was noted that safety nets for the fields, two sections–100 x 25 ft. had been ordered through BSN and are expected to arrive by around April 3. This is a project the park board and Youth League have been advocating for several months now.

Board member Chris Marlow also noted that six 40’ light poles at a cost of $1,475 would be in place at the park, installed by South Kentucky RECC and funded by the Youth League. Also, RECC is changing the parking area lighting to LED lights, which should be a big savings on electricity bills at the park.

Marlow also said that Kevin Cook would be handling electrical issues with poles and breaker boxes, including at the playground area.

Also discussed at the meeting was an agreement to have the exhaust fan in a restroom repaired at an estimated cost of $150; securing field fences and moving of the trash dumpster to help cut down on persons dumping trash and other items at the park.

At the start of the meeting, the monthly treasurer’s report was also approved.

The next regular meeting of the Clinton County Recreation/Park Board is scheduled for Thursday, April 30, at 6 p.m.

(The park board would like to thank its many patrons who use the park each year and ask for their adherence to health and safety rules in place, as well as their patience until the park can be fully opened for all use and activities.

They would also like to thank the three entities that support the park annually, including the city, county and school board, who make it possible for the park to operate and provide recreation to all local and area citizens.)