Funding sought for enhancements to Pine Community Park

Pine Community Park could see multiple improvements if grant funding comes through.

At the March 20 board of supervisors meeting, capital programs manager Stacey Graf spoke about the application for an AARP Community Challenge Grant.

“What we’re proposing as part of the master plan is for bike racks to be installed at different locations throughout the parks,” Graf said.

The bike racks will be designed to look like pine trees. Two bike racks each will be at six locations throughout the park for a total of 12 bike racks.

AARP Community Challenge provides small grants to fund construction projects that help communities become more livable for people of all ages. The grant is for about $20,000. The deadline for the grant application was March 15.

Township planner Kirsten Primm is applying for a T-Mobile Hometown Grant for equipment and programming for geocaching activities used in Pine Community Park. The deadline for grant applications is March 31.

“This grant’s funds can be used for a little bit of everything; it can be used for technology, recreation, anything that really betters your community,” Primm said.

The project combines technology and recreation. The funds allocated from the grant for this project are only for developing the program and acquiring the necessary supplies, Primm said.

The grant will allow the township to develop a geocaching program that utilizes the Pine Residential Connection app and GIS and GPS devices to navigate the park and surrounding trails to locate “hidden treasures.”

Primm hopes the geocaching program will “boost our park and trail utilization and put a new spin on recreation.”

There will be a logbook in each proposed cache for treasure hunters to sign their name, date it, and use the custom stamp to stamp their passports. Once all stamps have been collected, residents can turn in their passports for a collector’s item from the township. The locations will be updated over time, so the hunt is not a one-time-only event.

“We want this to be inclusive and accessible for everyone. We want it to be for all ages, all groups, not just tech savvy people,” Primm said.

There’s something for everyone when it comes to geocaching. Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts can earn geocaching badges.

The board of supervisors was excited about the prospects of both projects.

“They would both be great enhancements to the park to promote more usage of bicyclists and hikers/walkers,” said township manager Jason Kratsas.