Springfield’s Henry L. Brown Kooker Park is getting a facelift thanks to grants from ESPN and the NFL totaling $125,000.
City officials and local nonprofits gathered Thursday for a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the start of the renovations.
The ESPN and the NFL Foundation Grassroots Initiative is a program dedicated to revitalizing recreational fields nationwide.
Janet Owens, president of Jacksonville’s Local Initiative Support Corporation, says it jives with work LISC is already doing Operation New Hope in Jacksonville.
“This particular initiative will be one of the most signature fields that will have been developed with this program,” Owens said. “We are all very thankful to the Jacksonville Jaguars and ESPN for seeing the potential role this park can play in those crucial community revitalization efforts,” Owens said.
Henry L. Brown, the park’s namesake, ran youth athletic programs at Kooker Park for 30 years, according to a city news release. After Brown’s death in 2003, usage of the park has declined, and the Boys and Girls Club moved its programs out.
LISC, with funding from the NFL Grassroots Initiative, has helped revitalize at least 11 other parks in Northeast Florida so far.
Peter Racine of the Jaguars Foundation said, “If you’re in Mandarin, if you’re in Eastside, if you’re in Springfield, if you’re here, you should have the same access to safe and healthy parks.”
The improvements to the almost century-old park will include installing new turf grass, a new irrigation system, and multi-sport nets. Improvements will also be made to the scoreboards and concession stand.
The renovations of Kooker Park are expected to be complete by September.
Contact Tiffany Salameh at newsteam@wjct.org or on Twitter at @tiffanysalameh.