Major improvements are planned by Wildwood for Martin Luther King Jr. Park along Walker Road and Lake Deaton, which could host dragon boats.
Commissioners voted Monday night to allocate $1.935 million for the first phase of improvements at Martin Luther King Jr. Park on the city’s west side and $80,700 to complete a master plan for Lake Deaton on the city’s east side north of State Road 44.
Improvements at Martin Luther King Jr. Park include parking areas, a driveway, storm water retention pond, multipurpose field, bleachers, a scoreboard, fencing and landscaping. A basketball court, children’s playground and a future multipurpose building also are planned.
A contract was awarded to Daly & Zilch of Lecanto, the second lowest bidder, to make the improvements. A bid more than $200,000 lower from EarthScapes Unlimited of Coleman was rejected because the company does not have a construction contractor’s license.
City Manager Jason McHugh said the project will be funded partly by impact fees and leftover loan proceeds.
“This only sets the stage for additional improvements,” he said, adding that afterward the city will focus on improvements at Millennium Park along Powell Road.
At Lake Deaton, improvements may include a pier, restrooms, sidewalk and parking so it can be used for dragon boats and kayaks.
With several clubs and teams, dragon boats, which currently use Lake Miona for competitions, are a popular activity in The Villages. Holding up to 20 people, they are long rowed boats originating in China.
CPH Engineers, which has 14 offices and 240 employees, mostly in Florida, was selected to complete the Lake Deaton master plan. The contract includes surveying, design services, septic system analysis, environmental and permitting services and site analysis.
The company is expected to provide details of the plan at a workshop meeting with the city’s parks and recreation manager.
McHugh said the master plan cost is higher because it involves a lake and environmental impacts.
“No matter what we plan out there, we need to just get this done,” he said.
Mayor Ed Wolf said he’s skeptical about dragon boats on Lake Deaton, although he pledged to follow the direction of other commissioners.
He said the lake was undeveloped for 50 years and once was a prime area for duck hunting.
“It kills your fishing,” he said of the dragon boats.
