8/18/2023 0 Comments Homes on geist reservoirThose without a smartphone can get a physical card, according to the city’s website. But right now, I don’t anticipate that to be the case, at least this first year.”įishers residents can register with the city at /219/Geist-Waterfront-Park, where they can download a “SmartPass” onto their phones to park at no charge. “And maybe someday, if demand goes down, there would be an opportunity for that. “We certainly understand the rest of the region’s desire to utilize this park for free or at a nominal fee, and man, I wish we could accommodate that,” Fadness said. Jenna Alexander, 9, and Kara Alexander, 7, of Fishers play in the sand at Geist Waterfront Park. He said the $50 fee for nonresidents to park is comparable to what individual Fishers residents have paid for the park’s development, and will continue to pay for its maintenance. Fadness said the park is a $30 million investment that the taxpayers of Fishers paid for, so it’s right for them to have priority. The city has received criticism because of the $50 parking fee for nonresidents to come to the park during beach season. The remaining 30 acres, still under development, will be dedicated to “passive” recreation, Reardon-McSoley said, with gravel trails and other quiet engagement opportunities. One shelter is available for rent for special events. There are shelters around the playground with picnic benches for visitors to get out of the sun. The playground has a soft artificial turf that doesn’t retain heat, so it won’t burn little bare feet on a hot summer day. The park is about 70 acres in total, and 40 acres have been developed. Reardon-McSoley said there also will be a local food vendor selling concessions. There is a launch ramp on one end of the beach for nonmotorized watercraft, and a vendor on-site who will rent out kayaks and paddle boards to those who don’t have their own. There will be eight lifeguards on duty when swimming is allowed, he said - six on the beach and two in the water. And we’ve already started getting them and everything’s a thumbs up. “We get water-quality samples, tested weekly. “And then we operate this the same that really any aquatic recreation during the summertime would do,” he said. Lifeguards train in anticipation of the Geist Waterfront Park beach season, which started over Memorial Day Weekend. Those, combined with six aerators the city installed in the swimming area, will help keep the water from growing dangerous levels of algae. Reardon-McSoley said the swimming area has three natural fresh-water springs that were discovered during development. People were on the beach building sandcastles, and kids explored special equipment made specifically for sand play. The sand has been a big attraction even before swimming was allowed. So, it almost looks like a golf course sand trap when people come in the morning.” And actually, our Department of Public Works team works very hard, raking it daily. “There’s a gradual slope for 50 feet that goes down to a maximum depth of 4 feet. “It has now resulted in a great, very family-friendly experience,” he said. Jake Reardon-McSoley, City of Fishers director of Recreation and Wellness, said the city brought in about 12,000 tons of sand to build up the beach and make it a better swimming experience, compared to the usual muddy lake bottom. If you have a 4-year-old or a 7-year-old, when they walk out there, it’ll be a nice natural kind of incline, versus what otherwise I think was like a 20- or 30-foot drop off.” And then they had to literally haul in thousands of cubic yards of fill to get to the beach. “There was a dam made, the water was pumped out, all the fish were actually shocked - they captured them and then put them back in the lake, so they didn’t die. “So, all that water you see out there was actually drained,” he said, pointing to the designated swimming area. Taking a tour of the park, Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness said development included completely overhauling the beach to make it swim-friendly for a variety of ages. Families wandered through the park’s brand-new facilities kids clambered over the pirate-ship play equipment a group of lifeguards finished up training in preparation for the coming months and almost everyone dug their toes into the soft, sandy beach. The hard opening over Memorial Day weekend kicked off what Fishers officials call “beach season.”Ībout a week before beach season started, it was nearly 80 degrees on a sunny afternoon. Fishers’ newest park has been softly open to the public since April 22, and has seen steady use, especially on some of the recent beautiful days.
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