The preliminary plan for Lake Atalanta renovation sounds interesting.
It was presented at a committee meeting last week. I would have liked to have seen the plan, but Friday afternoons aren't the best time for newspaper editors to skip work.
Besides, I was out of town.
I like the idea of an amphitheater. It's suppose to be at the south end of the lake. To me, that's the parking lot.
Of course things are going to look a lot different once one work finally starts.
A roundabout is planned. I am trying to envision that, too.
Roundabouts take space, and, unless plans are to sheer off the side of a hill, it would seem it would have to encroach in the area where the roller rink once was.
Clark Pavilion is on the other side of Walnut Street, and I wouldn't think you would design one that would encroach on the area around it because it is already pretty close to the street.
I am morally opposed to roundabouts, but they are the darling of street designers/traffic engineers.
I mean, the Rogers Police Department actually has directions on how to motivate around a roundabout on their nifty new smartphone app.
I theorize that if you have to have directions on how to negotiate a roundabout on a cellphone app, it might not be the best thing to have, if for no other reason than you aren't suppose to be looking at your phone while driving.
Anyway, I am pretty sure we are going to get a roundabout at Lake Atalanta.
I like the idea of a serenity garden. That's suppose to be on the west side of the lake. Maybe someone will plant flowers. I know I feel serene when I look at flowers, especially if I don't have to take care of them.
We don't have a lot of flowers on city property. I was in Bentonville at Orchard Park for a charity walk a couple of weekends ago, and they have flowers. I was so impressed with the gardens full of blooming cosmos and black-eyed Susans, I took pictures and posted to Facebook.
A splash park for kids is planned. That will be nice, but what about a splash park for adults -- a kid-free zone. You know, adults could drag their lawn chairs into the middle of the splash and cool off. No swimming required.
I like that idea.
Renovation of Lake Atalanta has been slow out of the starting blocks, but seems to have gotten traction now. Dredging is delayed due to Corps of Engineers permits that are required. City officials feel sure other work at the lake will start next year, although dredging may not be complete -- maybe not even started.
Wouldn't it be great to see some of those amenities in place for next year's park season?
•••
I spent last weekend on a much-needed escape with by BFFL. We went to Springfield, Mo., not that it is the most exciting place in the world, but it's nearby, and we had a blast.
Being from north central Arkansas, Springfield was our go-to place when we were growing up, so we know it pretty well.
We spent most of our time in what I would call the university district, on and near the campus of Missouri State University. We were there because most of our itinerary involved small businesses that have developed in the area.
There are some good re-use ideas in this area of the city.
Breakfast was at Tea Bar and Bites Bakery in an old Spanish-style building on South Pickwick. There were other businesses in the building -- a spa and natural food store among them. I barely remember them because I was in ecstasy over the caramel cinnamon roll at Tea Bar.
Down the block on Cherry Street is Elle's Patisserie. It's a tiny, tiny, tiny building, but the white chocolate daisies have big, big, big flavor.
Next door is Lavare Day Spa, located in a ranch-style house. Let me tell you, all old, unlived-in ranch-style houses could be redeveloped into spas. It would be heavenly.
Then it was off to RSVPaint, in an old storefront on Campbell Street. If you didn't know this was an old building, you wouldn't know it because it has clean, modern art studio lines.
Drooling at new shoes at a Designer Shoe Warehouse -- like the one at Pinnacle Hills Promenade -- is pretty cool, but it is hard to beat seeing small businesses making their mark and saving buildings that would otherwise be lost to the ravages of time.
Commentary on 09/25/2014