Workers are nearing completion of a $1.3 million expansion of Limerick Community Park, writes Evan Brandt for the Pottstown Mercury. The new update will feature new tennis and pickleball courts.

During the Oct. 1 meeting, Township Manager Dan Kerr updated the supervisors on the project’s progress and received approval to open the courts to the public ahead of schedule. A formal ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for later in the month, likely around Oct. 26, once the new parking lot with 60 to 70 spaces off Ridge Pike is completed.

Kerr noted that the courts are already generating significant interest from the community, with requests for time slots coming in. “We anticipate a lot of use of those facilities,” he told the supervisors. “We’re already getting requests for time, so I think we’re going to schedule them in one-hour blocks.”

State Rep. Joe Ciresi  played a key role in securing three grants totaling $675,000 from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which helped cover the cost of the expansion. The township matched the grant funds to finance the project.

While the courts are finished, phase one of the park’s master plan is not yet complete. Kerr said that two additional ballfields are still planned for construction, pending supervisor approval and available funding.

Limerick Community Park, which originally spanned 56 acres, grew by 25 acres in 2016 following a land donation. A $50,000 study, partly funded by a state grant, guided the park’s redesign, which includes multi-use fields for soccer, lacrosse, and football, as well as basketball and volleyball courts, trails, and community gardens. Future plans also include a large multi-use field, an amphitheater, and a complete rebuild of the Manderach Playground.

Read more about the Limerick Community Park expansion at the Pottstown Mercury.