East Palestine Village Council approved plans for Phase 2 of the multi-million dollar park renovation project. That phase is the construction and installation of a new aquatic center that will replace the existing pool and pool house, pictured. (Photo by Stephanie Elverd)

EAST PALESTINE — During a special meeting on Monday, East Palestine Village Council unanimously approved a motion to accept and approve plans for the second of eight planned phases to move along the multi-million dollar park renovation project.

Phase 2 is the construction and installation of a new aquatic center that includes an olympic-size pool area (50 meters in length and 25 meters in width) as well as a zero-entry recreation/multi-use area, an in-water seating, a double slide, a toddler pool and a splash pad. The new aquatic center will also feature a modern pool house with locker rooms, bathroom and concession facilities as well as a community room. The final specifications of the pool house will be designed after dimensions and room sizes are decided later on in the process.

Representatives of Michael Baker International — the design firm hired by Norfolk Southern to manage the project — walked council through the pool plans which are to be completed by the Memorial Day of 2025, the start of the next year’s pool season. Fast approval was needed to keep the timeline on track.

The park project, which will be fully funded by Norfolk Southern and is “expected to cost upwards of $25 million,” has received mixed reviews from the public. While most agree that an overhaul of the park at no cost to the village or local taxpayers is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, the planning process itself has been criticized, as has what some say are murky details when it comes to disclosing how much each phase of the project will actually cost. Last year, East Palestine Park Board members voiced frustration that the board had been left out of planning. Residents also felt left out and the plans were put on hold until more community input was gathered. Residents also asked for the addition of pickleball courts — preliminary combined pickleball and tennis — and after much conversation at back-to-back council meetings designs were adjusted to address those requests.

One resident spoke out on Monday about the lack of a detailed account of how the $25 million is being spent.

“How much of the $25 million is this going to eat up? I have asked this question four times and nobody has given anybody an answer,” he said. “We got $25 million and we got 17 projects going on in the park. This is going to eat up a significant amount. I just want to know what the amount is that it’s going to use. Is it going to be $17 million, 13 million, 11 million?”

No itemized account was available at Monday’s meeting but Michael Baker International and former acting city manager Traci Pratt explained that all projects are within the allocated $25 million budget and projects are “budgeted out.”

That prompted another resident to question the unavailability of an exact cost of the aquatic center.

“So we don’t know how much money we are putting into the pool itself?” he asked. “I understand the entire project has been budgeted out, but to budget it out, you have say ‘I am going to spend this much on the pool, this much on the basketball courts, this much for the pickleball courts.'”

It is unclear whether a better breakdown of the costs will be released to the public.

Other than the concerns regarding a better explanation of how much money is being spent on what, most of the feedback was positive and council moved forward.

Last month, council passed a motion granting permission for work on the Phase 1. That phase includes relocation of the tennis and basketball courts, installation of the new pickleball courts, construction of an amphitheater, improvements to the field areas, extended parking and additional dog park parking and lighting and new walking paths connected to existing asphalt paths. New drainage, an underground powerline network and a temporary retention pond for stormwater is also among the work to be completed in the first phase.

Work on Phase 1 is expected to begin after the Fourth of July weekend. The final phase is expected to be finished by the end of 2027. Phase 2 will begin in the final quarter of this year.