New playground

RIO HONDO - The city's newest park is only months away from completion, county officials said.

The park on South Reynolds Road, tentatively named Rio Hondo County Park, is being built by the county. But the city is expected to maintain it once it is ready, Cameron County Parks Director Javier Mendez said.

"It's almost completed," Mendez said. "It's open and people are using it."

The final items the county needs to complete the park are the landscaping and seeding the fields, he said. Once it stops raining and the ground dries, that work can begin.

Mendez said the city approached the county in February asking for help in seeking a grant for the park. Currently, the only other park the city has is behind the Rio Hondo Municipal Building.

Ultimately, county officials decided to issue certificates of obligation and build the park themselves and turn it over to the city once it's completed, Mendez said.

The park features a pavilion, playground, soccer, softball and baseball fields, a basketball court, a concession stand and restrooms, Mendez said. The cost of the park is estimated at $1.6 million, he added.

Once the county turns the park over to Rio Hondo, the city will assume the cost to maintain the area, which includes paying bills for water, sewer, garbage and general landscaping and maintenance.

Mendez estimated that it will cost about $47,000 a year for Rio Hondo to maintain the park.

"The county will keep the lease and have an interlocal (agreement) where they maintain the park," Mendez said.

At a city meeting recently, commissioners said they were concerned with the liability of having a park.

"The city needs to step up to the plate and help," said Mayor Pro Tem Jerry Hartzog. "But the county should still take responsibility on liability because ... county residents will use the park, too."