In March 19 Issue
By Derek Aaron
Times Journal Reporter

With spring making its yearly debut on Friday, the city officials have begun giving the Russell Springs its warm weather facelift, according to Russell Springs Mayor Hollis DeHart.

Jeremy Coffey, who oversees the Leroy Rowe Memorial Park in Russell Springs, said he and other city employees had only been on the park job for several days due to the wet weather we've experienced recently.

Coffey said that two press boxes at the baseball fields were being rebuilt as the other ones had been deemed unsafe. They are currently waiting for the metal siding and roofing before it can be completed.

"We installed the new sprinkler system on the fields last year and that has really helped them," Coffey said.

He said that seasonal work on the Joseph Smith Hayes swimming pool would also soon begin as would putting up the nets on the tennis and volleyball courts as well as the batting cage nets.

DeHart said the park provides a tremendous amount of recreational opportunities for people.

"But it's been so wet we can't do anything much over there yet," he said. "It'll be Friday or maybe even next week before we can even begin mowing the fields."

DeHart said the grass on the much-utilized baseball fields was already starting to green up after being fertilized late this winter.

He said the city was going to ask the various Little League coaches to help in the upkeep of the city's four baseball fields this season.

"We're very limited in the number of people that we can put to work over there," the mayor said. He said that the limited manpower is due to the city's equipment operator mowing more than ever before this summer. Last year the city purchased a new tractor and mowing machine and the city will be mowing more right-of-ways, so that just leaves the city one or two people to take care of the full load of work at the city park.

"We look forward to the park being open this summer," DeHart said. "It'll be a couple of weeks and we'll be working on the pool again and getting ready for the 30th of May when we'll open it."

Another activity that DeHart said his taken advantage of more and more each day is the walking trail.

"People use it every day," he said. "I am amazed at how much people do use it."