Vicksburg will soon be adding two extra tennis courts at Halls Ferry Park funded in part by a recently awarded $100,000 Mississippi Wildlife and Fisheries Land and Water Conservation grant.
The $200,000 project involves building two courts northeast of the park’s 10 existing courts and developing a handicap accessible walkway from the parking lot to the courts. The grant, which was awarded Monday, will cover half the project cost. The city will pay the remainder.
“The area where we are going to build the courts already has a flat surface,” city landscape director Jeff Richardson said. “The challenge will be finding the shortest route from the parking area to the new courts. Most of the grant will be used to meet the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements.”
Grants coordinator Marcia Weaver said the city expects to soon advertise for qualifications for architect and engineering services to develop the project design.
“This is a program that Wildlife and Fisheries hasn’t had in some time,” she said. “When it became available, we applied. I’m glad we were able to get some of the money.”
She said a second state grant application for a walking trail at Halls Ferry was unsuccessful.
“The two additional tennis courts means that we will only need two more and we will be able to qualify for collegiate tennis matches and adult competition,” Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said. “We’re ready to go forward.”
The Wildlife and Fisheries grant is the second the city has received in three years. The city received a similar $100,000 state grant in 2011 to build the skate park at City Park, which opened in the summer of 2013. The current grant was applied for on May 19.