Wes Simpson, the spearhead for a project to place a park downtown, inspects a design proposal submitted to the city of Glasgow by Scott, Murphy & Daniel Construction last fall.
(WCLU NEWS FILE PHOTO)
BY BRENNAN D. CRAIN, WCLU News
GLASGOW — Councilmembers of the Glasgow City Council are set to consider Monday the sale of a city-owned property along West Main Street to the Barren Fiscal Court for the construction of a new court facility.
County magistrates voted last week to seek a 180-day option to purchase 5.098 acres of property owned by the city. Officials would not detail the location of the land after the vote, but an aerial photograph included in the city council’s meeting agenda shows the property near a post office and Dollar General store.
Members of project development board overseeing the judicial center project confirmed to WCLU News that previous discussions detailed the need for approximately 2.5 acres of land for the new courthouse. Magistrates did not detail their plans for all of the acreage they voted to seek, however.
“We need to not jam it up in one little corner somewhere just because someone don’t want to ask someone else to sell a piece of land,” said Tim Coomer, a magistrate.
A project to build a park near downtown began about three years ago in Glasgow, and park supporters have eyed the same property since the park became an idea. Wes Simpson has spearheaded the project, which seeks to combine private investments with an investment from the city of Glasgow. He also serves as the chair for a steering committee developed by the city council to oversee the park’s development.
Simpson said supporters of the park were disappointed to learn magistrates voted to obtain all the property from the city.
“On paper, it would seem that it would be gone. The project would be done,” he said. “Nobody knows what the county’s plans are with buying more than what they need. I do remember the magistrates saying they didn’t want anything to do with a park.”
A resolution detailing the potential sale was released last Friday as a part of the Glasgow Council’s agenda meeting packet. That resolution was updated Monday to include more land than was previously described.
The original resolution excluded a portion of a parking lot used by the Glasgow Department of Public Works. The updated version includes all of the parking lot with the other acreage.
Simpson said the last three years of work could crumble if the Council votes to sell the land. Because draft drawings and an architectural analysis of the West Main property has been completed, he said it is unlikely the project could eye another area without significant work.
“I think the community has shown it wants the park,” Simpson said. “It made its voice known in the listening sessions for the strategic plan, and it’s made its voice known at committee meetings and at council meetings. Don’t forget those things.”
Monday’s meeting is expected to begin inside Glasgow City Hall at 7 p.m.
