Organizers of the Olpe Fitness Park Project are inching closer and closer to their $2.5 million fundraising goal. Now they will have more time to hit it following the USD 252 Southern Lyon County Board of Education meeting from this past Wednesday.
As part of their agenda, board members approved a deadline extension for the committee to hit its fundraising goal and thus claim a $600,000 match from the district which was pledged last year. The new deadline will give the committee until the end of the calendar year to reach the goal, a six-month extension from the original June 1 deadline.
Committee member Tyler Schmidt says that at the current pace of fundraising, he believes that will be more than enough time.
Schmidt adds that while they have an extra six months to work with, the sooner they can hit the goal the better.
The fitness park is a three-phased project set to bring a splash pad, a walking path around Olpe Jones Park, fitness stations along the path and recent additions like a new basketball court and fencing around the softball field. Olpe is also looking to turn the football practice field into the main stadium with an eight-lane track and other track and field amenities.
The plan also involves a field house with a community center and community weight room, an early childcare center and a reversed layout for the baseball field.
In other business Wednesday, board members also had a first reading of the 2024-2025 student handbook and reviewed fee changes as well as the 2024-2025 food service management contract.
