“Right now we’re trying to investigate where we can launch the boats from,” she said.
There is a boat ramp at Marsh Park, which is only for emergency access, but no boats are permitted on the lake. Howard said that ramp is too steep to launch a non-motorized boat.
When officials allow the non-motorized boats, Howard said they need to address other stipulations that could be placed on park patrons. They may charge for boating on the lake, and they’ll determine how far boats can travel on the lake.
“With the non-motorized boat, you have the whole lake,” she said.
But parks staff have talked about limiting boats to the southern end of the lake so staff can keep an eye on boaters, “but that will require signage and buoys. We’re working through the logistics right now,” she said.
As of now, there are only three designated fishing locations as the edge of the lake, which isn’t conducive to fishing from the shore, Howard said.
While the city is working to expand the park, City Engineer Ben Mann said, “We’re still several years out (on planning).”
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The city has spent years investing in expanding the park and eventually will transform it from 30 acres to 170 acres. Most of the acreage increase comes from the 2017 acquisition of the former aggregate mining company Martin Marietta property adjacent to Marsh. Sixty acres of the property will be water in three large lakes.
The Marsh Park expansion will help get the city closer to completing its portion of the Great Miami Bike Trail. Mann will ask City Council at its meeting next month to apply for a $700,000 grant from the OKI Regional Council of Governments to connect the Great Miami Bike Trail from Marsh Park to the dog park, which would be a $1.1 million project.
The city is able to connect the bike trail to the dog park because of the roundabout set to be built this summer at Gray and River roads, and the 2016 acquisition of the former Muskopf property.
PHOTOS: Fairfield’s historic Cooper House demolished (April 2018)
A year ago this week, council voted to raze the property's home, known as the Cooper house. It was a somewhat controversial decision as a group of area residents wanted the city to save the house. City officials said it would take upwards of $1 million over a few years to fix and maintain the building. The building at 6460 River Road was razed on April 30, 2018.
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