— Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle Wednesday outlined large-scale improvements for John Hunt Park, known to most as the “old airport.”

Battle’s plans for the 387-acre park, located at the intersection of Airport Road and Memorial Parkway, provides for a network of activity centers interspersed with running and walking trails, bike paths, playgrounds and park areas.

Renovations also provide for updated facilities, new venues for regional athletic tournaments and large-scale sporting and recreational events.

“We think it’s time to get rid of the old airport runways and create our own central park with a variety of activities for all citizens,” Battle said. “John Hunt Park is a beautiful site, and we want to see it realize its full potential.”

Centrally located, John Hunt Park is approximately 10 miles from Huntsville’s outermost city limits in any direction.

Highlights of the plan include:

• New playground with interactive splash fountain, group pavilions, picnic facilities, expanded lawn/play areas, and walking/jogging paths

• Expanded multi-use sports field facilities

• Expanded tennis complex with additional courts and support structures

• Expanded parking for the tennis and baseball complexes

• Improved access to the golf course

• New walking/exercise course with support facilities

• Expanded cross country running course and support facilities

• 34,000-square-foot ice complex expansion to accommodate a third sheet of ice

• New 4,000-seat, multi-purpose indoor athletic facility

• New 15-acre festival area with a 25,000-square-foot multi-purpose community building, plaza, outdoor amphitheater, pavilions and picnic facilities, walking/jogging trails, lawn exhibit area, and water feature/lake

• Vehicular/pedestrian connection to Brahan Springs Park

The Huntsville Sports Commission believes the new recreational facilities in the plan will allow Huntsville to become a premier sports destination.

“Tournaments and sporting events are big business and good, wholesome fun,” said Ralph Stone, Sports Commission executive director. “They stimulate tourism, generate new revenues for local businesses, and increase sales and use taxes.”

Battle envisions the master plan implemented in two phases. Construction on phase one would begin with proposed projects to the southern section of the Park along with infrastructure improvements to the north. To pay for this portion of the project, the cty of Huntsville is looking at various sources of revenues, including, but not limited to, the sale of city property, earmarked sales tax revenues, public-private partnerships and naming opportunities.

This includes selling a 25-acre tract of property near the Airport Road Memorial Parkway intersection for retail development. The funds would help purchase land near McDonnell Elementary School on Triana Boulevard for a new multi-use sports field complex. This would accommodate youth soccer, lacrosse, and other active sports using the non-tournament fields at John Hunt Park.

“The multipurpose fields at John Hunt Park are not in the best shape, and we are excited at the prospect of having a separate park dedicated for these activities,” said Greg Patterson, director of Parks & Recreation.

Once the fields are relocated, work can begin on the southern end of John Hunt Park. The City will remove existing remnants of the asphalt runways, derelict fencing and obsolete utility equipment; plant grass and trees, construct a new children’s playground; and expand walking, exercise and running paths.

“Further progress on the park will depend on new sources of funding and public-private partnerships,” Battle said. “We are pledging to earmark 25 percent of the sales tax generated by the new retail development on Airport Road to the ongoing development of John Hunt Park.”

Phase two of the master plan will focus on facilities in the park’s northern section.

The City acknowledges it will take time to fully implement the master plan. Public-private partnerships will be important as the park redevelops.

To encourage citizen input, Battle has launched “Imagine Huntsville,” an online community forum to receive citizen comments on the master plan.

“We want to know what you think about our ideas, and we invite you to offer a few of your own,” he said.

For more information, visit www.ImagineHuntsville.com