CUMBERLAND — City officials agreed last week to allow a 3-acre portion of land along Sedgwick Street to become recreational space for a housing subdivision planned for the former Allegany High School site.
Allegany County owns the 12-acres at the location where 113 non-apartment housing units are to be constructed by developer D.R. Horton. However, the city of Cumberland owns the 3-acre parcel beside the former high school’s football field.
The parcel, which was periodically used as extra practice space for sports teams, sits west of the football field.
“The county wants to have green space — a park,” said Jeff Silka, city administrator. “The city owns the site and what they want to do is have permission to develop a park on our property.”
Silka said the city would retain ownership of the land.
“At the same time they can’t do it on land we own,” said Silka. “So, what we’d like to do is allow them, through an MOU, to use that land. The county will design the park and build the park. We will run the park but they will fund the development of the park.”
Silka said the project is a “win-win.”
“It will be a nice highlight to the residential development of the area,” said Silka.
County officials have not yet selected features for the park.
“I think we should let them do it,” said Mayor Ray Morriss. “Let them come up with a design and see what all we can fit in that space: pickleball or dog park or whatever they come up with.”
“We had reached out to (the city) to see if they would let us incorporate the area into the (housing) project,” Jason Bennett, county administrator, said Friday. “We’re thankful they want to do that. We don’t know totally what it will look like yet, but we know as part of it we want a connection to the Great Allegheny Passage.”
County officials would like the park to include a pathway connecting walkers to the nearby GAP trail.
Bennett said access to the trail could involve switchbacks over the hill or may utilize Wills Creek Avenue Extended, which runs directly to the trail.
“We have to look at right-of-ways and who owns what property,” said Bennett. “So those are things that we will have to determine in the coming weeks. I think the the engineering firm will be helpful with that.”
The Allegany County Board of Commissioners voted Thursday to contract with the EADS Group, Inc. a architectural and design firm to determine utilities and access points for the project.
“It will be a public park,” said Silka. “It’s another joint effort between the county and the city.”