CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE — John Meade Park and the Alan Hutto Memorial Commons aren’t exactly thumping with activity in Cherry Hills Village.
While nearby places like and have dedicated resources in recent years to creating public parks and spaces that can serve as community gathering spots and add to a sense of local identity, John Meade Park, despite being a stone’s throw from Cherry Hills Village City Hall, is outdated and does not serve such a purpose for the city now, according to Mayor Laura Christman.
But that is about to change.
As stipulated in the agreement whereby the 2.5-acre Alan Hutto Memorial Commons — which abuts the 7.5-acre park — was gifted to the city in 2013 by Frank and Holly Hutto and Peter and Linda Niederman, the city must build a small performance stage there by Oct. 3 of this year, according to Ryan Berninzoni, the city’s parks, trails and recreation administrator.
On top of that upcoming project, the city’s volunteer this week is expected to wrap up a six-month focused on redeveloping the park and send recommendations to the . If Council approves of the plans, transformations — including a new playground and enhancements to the pond — could take place in the near future, officials say.
“I am very excited about this park,” Christman said. “We have had extensive input from the community, and it should become a park that will retain many, many of its existing elements and become really a wonderful amenity for all of our citizens from the very young to the very old.”
Christman, a retired attorney who has lived in Cherry Hills for 25 years, said the playground does not comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. She said she is very excited by some of the ideas generated by the public planning process, including a new, nature-focused playground area and an educational wetland boardwalk around the park’s pond through which visitors could learn about native wildlife and riparian habitat.
The plan also calls for a 100-space parking lot surrounding a relocated city hall, but officials say that portion is contingent on funding, and park improvements could come first.
“What we’re really looking for is a place where parents with small children can feel free to meet with other parents of small children and have a cup of coffee and watch their children play,” Christman said. “We’re not intending it as a major gathering place. We want it to be more of a warm, informal, casual place people can gather if they so choose.”
Berninzoni said that unless the parks commission makes major changes to the plans for the park, he expected to have them on the City Council agenda for consideration on Aug. 4. As for the “performance pad” at the Alan Hutto Memorial Commons, he said the city has two designs ready for council consideration, one in which a 30-by-16-foot stage is surrounded by a small amphitheater laid in concrete pavers, and another where the amphitheater is constructed of tiers of landscaped grass. He said all of the materials used there this year will be recycled if the performance pad is upgraded as part of large park improvements later.
Cherry Hills received a $35,000 grant for the park planning process and hired on THK Associates Inc., a landscape architecture firm to lead it, Berninzoni said.
City Councilman Mike Gallagher is the liaison to the parks, trails and recreation commission and said he has been very impressed with the amount of public comment offered on the park.
“You know, I think it’s just thoughtful development of the space,” he said, noting that the plan does not call for much new infrastructure. “Truly, the idea is less is more. And, clearly, our community favors that approach.”
Gallagher said he expects redevelopment of the park to happen quickly should the City Council approve the plans.
“This is not going to sit on the shelf,” he said. “We are going to move forward.”
Joe Rubino: 303-954-2953 or jrubino@denverpost.com
