CONNEAUT – The Conneaut Township Park Board of Commissioners members believe in the legacy they have endeavored to protect when it comes to the century-old 60-acre park.
That legacy includes protecting the park and its assets, like the beach, but also providing visitors with the best experience possible.
As part of those efforts, the Township Park Board of Commissioners wanted to take tennis courts that were rundown and unusable and turn them into pickleball courts that can be used and enjoyed for decades to come.
“More than anything, I just hope to see people playing, because what was here used to be tennis courts years ago, and they were old and dilapidated, and people couldn’t use them anymore,” Conneaut Township Park Commissioner Danny Sullivan said. “It was, really, wasted space. This was our goal, and we made it, and we just want people to play here, have fun.”
The Township Park Board of Commissioners unveiled four new pickleball courts during the Civic Development Corporation’s Annual Meeting in the park on Thursday, May 14.
The courts were built with a $75,000 grant through the Civic Development Corporation’s Campaign 2025. The park board contributed $10,000 to the project.
“Anything that’s recreational, especially moving into summer, it’s really exciting, because not only can our locals use it, but all the tourists coming into the county can use it,” Civic Development Corporation Executive Director Amanda Tirotta said. “The timing couldn’t be any more perfect, really, so it’s very exciting.”
“These four pickleball courts are a direct reflection of the support, vision and commitment of our donors and our community partners,” Tirotta continued. “Thank you for helping turn this project into a reality.”
The pickleball courts are the latest in a number of recent improvements made in Conneaut Township Park.
“It’s very exciting for us as a board,” Sullivan said. “We have our to-do list, we have our five-year plan. We put in brand-new concession stand with six bathrooms that are all purpose, and then we the bridge that we had to redo completely, brick by brick. The boardwalk, we have one more phase, and then that’s done throughout the park. Each group of commissioners makes it better and that’s what we’re doing. We’ve done some pretty big projects, but everybody does their share.”
The Township Park Board of Commissioners is grateful to have received the grant from the Civic Development Corporation.
“The CDC is a great friend of Conneaut Township Park and have been for a long, long time, and we are very appreciative,” Sullivan said.
Conversely, the Civic Development Corporation is pleased to support the Township Park Board of Commissioners.
“We love working with them,” Tirotta said. “They’re so easy to work with. Their record keeping is great. They’re organized. They take care of their assets. This park is just so beautiful. We know that any money that’s being donated by our donors, (the Conneaut Township Park Board of Commissioners) is going to protect it and keep it so protected for years to come.”
Additional Campaign 2025 projects for the Civic Development Corporation include the Conneaut Port Authority’s improvements to Naylor Drive, marine expansion, waterfront redevelopment, and infrastructure improvements; the inclusive playground project in Jefferson; and the Ashtabula County YMCA’s purchase of 15 Kaiser premium indoor cycling bikes;
“After going through COVID, we saw a need there was community to have these opportunities to do recreational activities with family,” Tirotta said. “Having opportunities like these in Ashtabula County is really important. We kind of tried to focus a little bit more on that this time around. Ironically, a lot of our grants that came through had that same theme to it. Not to be cliche, but that’s what we’re doing. We’re embracing what we have here in the county and trying to make the best of our assets. We have all of these beautiful outdoor spaces. We might as well use them.”
The Township Park Board of Commissioners is also working on another project.
“The other thing that’s going on for us is that we got a grant for the kayak/canoe launch,” Conneaut Township Park Commissioner Mike Smith said. “From Farnham Road to Old Mill Road, it is 17.6 miles by kayak or canoe, three-and-a-half miles driving, from beginning to end. I wrote that grant up, and it was selected by the Ohio Department of Development. This is the sort of thing that they were looking for to help tourism in Ashtabula County.”
The park has received a $276,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Development for the project.
“There will be parking along the road out at Farnham Road, parking spaces, then a walk that goes down to the creek, all the way to the launch,” Smith said. “Then, at the takeout, which already exists at Old Mill Road, we’re going to repave part of that parking lot. It’s just gravel right now.”
