City of Jasper hosting public meeting on future of Seng Park

After letters to the 41 property owners around Seng Park prompted several calls to the city, officials scheduled a public informational meeting on the park’s future for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, at the Jasper Train Depot, 201 Main Street.

Seng Park, at Genevieve Avenue and Giesler Road, is listed as Lot No. 14 in Seng’s Heights Subdivision. The city holds the deed but lacks clear legal title — the land is technically owned by the 41 surrounding property owners — and it’s platted for recreational use only.

The Park Board voted to send those owners letters asking them to sign a quitclaim deed transferring their interest to the city during June’s meeting, a step that would require unanimous agreement from those individuals before the city could pursue redevelopment.

Kabrick told the Park Board this week that the volume of calls from Seng Park–area residents led the city to schedule the meeting so staff can walk neighbors through the history of the issue, expand on what was laid out in the letter, and take questions about the park’s future — while also gathering public input. Park Board members, Jasper Common Council members, and parks staff familiar with the situation are expected to attend.

Kabrick said most calls so far have focused on the city’s development plans for the site, with a number of residents preferring that the land remain a park.

The city also sent letters to residents around Hochgesang Park, but received only one call in response. “We will probably go ahead and schedule a meeting for that park as well,” Kabrick told the board, though that hasn’t occurred yet.