BEDFORD, Ky. (June 2004) – Trimble County residents will have less mud to contend with should rainy weather dampen festivities during the county fair June 22-26. The midway this year will be moved to the north side of the park, allowing rides and other attractions to be on or adjacent to pavement. A 400-amp electrical service will be installed to service the new area.

Photo by Ruth Wright Trimble Co. Judge-Executive Randy Stevens

A new spot for the fair and other changes are part of what county officials hope will make Trimble County Park the place to be for activities – everything from fairs to sporting events. “There’s good things happening,” said Judge-Executive Randy Stevens. These include ideas for the park proposed in a master plan drafted by Strand Associates Inc. of Lexington, Ky.
Fiscal Court paid Strand $3,500 to draft the plan, which will be used to help solicit grant and other funds and will guide future improvements, according to Stevens. The fee was covered in part by a $1,500 donation from BellSouth.
Included in the plan is proposed expansion to the north and northeast of current facilities. Among the amenities suggested for the area are two “adult-sized” baseball fields, two sand volleyball courts, a football field, an additional concession stand and restrooms, a toddler playground, a tractor-pull pit, a horse area, a maintenance barn and group pavilion.
Also proposed is additional parking on either side of what is now entrance two, and a third entrance, which will divert automobiles away from the ball fields where pedestrian traffic is heavy. A half-mile walking trail, for which a federal grant may be available, is proposed for the wooded and hilly section of the park.
Even though not all of the proposed improvements will happen immediately, “At least we’ll know where it’s going to go when it goes in,” said Stevens.
The sand volleyball courts will likely be the first improvements this year, and by next year Stevens hopes to add two adult-sized ball fields and a football field for the county’s youth league, which is very popular, he said. Also in the works is a 40x50-foot auction shed for livestock located next to the stalls, for which a $10,000 bid has already been accepted.
Of the park’s 105 acres, just 25 are currently developed, which means there is plenty of room for additions and improvements. But in order to make sure everything is done to the satisfaction of county residents, “We have to approach this in a well-thought out manner,” Stevens said.
The county’s proposed budget, which Stevens hopes will be adopted well before the state’s July 1 deadline, this year includes $50,000 for improvements at the park. “Hopefully that will be matched by grants.”
Stevens plans to pursue sponsorship, grants and other private funding for the park so that improvements can be made without putting extra burden on taxpayers. Finding those, however, will take some time. “We need revenue sources and we need patience,” he said.
Although ahead of schedule, county officials were careful in planning the budget, Stevens stressed.
“This budget wasn’t whipped together,” Stevens said, adding that it came in $200,000 less than last year’s budget.
In addition to park improvements, other expenditures for the county will include in its budget renovation of a former Catholic church building on Hwy. 421 to be used for ambulance service headquarters. Last year for the first time the county budget included employment of the first full-time park attendee, Billy Temple. Also hired part-time was Michael Shelley.