PINE GROVE - Two meetings remain for the public to submit ideas for the Pleasant Valley Park Master Plan.
After that, the plan will be presented at a final meeting.
Meanwhile, ideas can also be emailed to rfasnacht@benesch.com or submitted by calling borough engineer Ryan Fasnacht at 570-622-4055.
A small group met on Feb. 26 in Pine Grove Borough Hall at which Fasnacht reviewed the modifications he made to the plan from the previous meeting.
A proposed recreation building has been eliminated. It would have been near the current site of the Tulpehocken Rifle and Pistol Club and planners had already agreed that nothing should be planned for that area, even in the long term.
However, two multi-purpose fields, with parking, remain in the plans. These are some distance from the ranges just off Berger Road.
The group of interested residents had previously agreed that a walking trail would be easy to construct and could be used by all ages, so that remains at the top of the list. Following a route through the Pleasant Valley Park, it will have parking areas at both ends and join up with the trail at the county's Sweet Arrow Lake Park.
Pine Grove Borough councilman Scott Zimmerman, who has been overseeing the meetings for the council, noted he would like to see the trail pass by the old PP&L locks. The Swatara Watershed's new long-term manager agreed and encouraged the group to preserve whatever historical features remain from the old PP&L plant as possible.
Pine Grove Borough bought the land that is now Sweet Arrow Lake Park from PP&L in 1972, and Schuylkill County bought it in 2001.
Bill Reichert said that preserving history adds weight to a project when applying for a grant. However, he would not object to the removal of some piers in the creek that support an old railroad bridge used by PP&L to bring in coal.
"I'm looking at anything in the watershed that can help (prevent flooding)," Reichert said.
Reichert said he recently attended a Susquehanna Greenway meeting, an effort to establish trails and boating routes in the Susquehanna watershed. Although the boundary of the Susquehanna Greenway is defined, there is talk about maybe looking at the tributaries which would include the Swatara. "Look closely at building your trail," he said, "and put the best trail in you can."