This is the revised rendering of the proposed Sierra Community Park Complex. Graphic submitted

Nov. 13, 2012 — Responding to concerns expressed by residents and the possibility of cost overruns, the Susanville City Council agreed to ask the state of California for design modifications for the Sierra Community Park project.

The city received a $2.1 million award from the state to build the park through a competitive grant for Proposition 84 funds.

According to the staff report prepared by Jared Hancock, city administrator, the master plan modifications include the removal of one tennis court, the reduction in the number of sports fields, the addition of a community garden and an open-space buffer and the rearrangement of master plan elements that will result in a “more functional site.”

Hancock told the council he hoped for a “quick turnaround” from the state because the city still has to meet a March deadline for the environmental reviews of the project. According to Hancock, the next step will be to see if the state will accept or deny the change in plans. He said it's possible the state will not accept the changes and the city will need to build the park according to the design submitted that qualified for the grant. Hancock said the city had “trimmed and cut everywhere we can” in an effort to “still meet the intent of the grant.”

Councilman Nick McBride asked about funding for the sprinkler system, and Hancock said that part of the project had been budgeted with $810,000. McBride also noted an error in the letter in that some of land around the park designated as agricultural land had not been used for agriculture in a decade.

Hancock said he would make the changes to the letter to the state before sending it off. He also noted in order for the project to come in at budget, materials will still need to be donated and work crews from the prison will need to utilized.