The Mandan Parks & Recreation District board has a difficult decision to make in March, whether to keep two "pocket parks" on its ever-growing list of public offerings or remove them from the rolls to free up resources.

Public hearings in January and February brought emotionally charged testimony from those closest to Tower Place and Optimist (Canyon) parks. They cited the importance of the parks to the children in the neighborhoods and property values. The hearings drew about 20 people trying to influence the five-member park board into saving the parks.

"They made a good case for people who are living next door to a park that is closing," board chairman Tracy Porter said. "But the issue we're dealing with, as a park board and district, is the best use of our resources citywide."

A visit to the two parks in question will leave a person wondering, "What's all the fuss about?" This time of year, they're bleak looking. Playground equipment, considered noncompliant with regulations, was removed last year, leaving them looking little more than empty lots.

Tower Place, so named since it shares space with the city's water tower, is a fairly flat three-quarter acre piece of property, not deep enough for a house, but a good place to throw a ball around, as long as it doesn't get away and over the fencing which keeps the inquisitive and mischief-makers away from Mandan's water supply.

This park would be easier to restore; just a little landscaping and a play package would turn it back to its former state, according to Cole Higlin, park district director.

Optimist Park is another story, Higlin said. The park is usually referred to as Canyon Park because the narrow, long, uneven piece of property falls off into a deep, heavily-wooded ravine into which three storm sewers empty.

It's estimated that it would take about 5,000 tons of fill to level the small usable portion of the property, which is less than half an acre in size. And a fence needs to be added to keep children from straying into the gully beyond.

But fixing up the parks and putting playground equipment on them - though there isn't much room at Optimist for more than a couple of swings and a bench - isn't the issue, Higlin said.

"The key is the long-term maintenance, not the equipment, but maintaining these pocket parks," Higlin said. "Access to these parks is very minimal for the rest of the community. You might say they've been cleverly hidden."

Higlin admits these parks mean a lot to those living next door, particularly those who used them while their kids grew up. There are emotional ties to these parks, but the district needs to look at the realities and resources used to maintain them.

Each week park crews have to transport equipment to these parks for upkeep, and each day they're checked to pick up litter and such. It may not seem like much, but when there are 20 other parks needing the same attention, it puts a strain on resources. And the system is growing, Higlin said, with another 3.5 acres to be added this year.

Another reason Tower and Optimist are expendable is their proximity to KC Park. The district has put a sizable investment into this three-acre neighborhood park, which has a new play package, tennis court, basketball hoops, shelters, and skating rink in the winter. Tower and Optimist are just two blocks from KC. Tower is also just two blocks south of the Elks Park, one of only two destination parks Mandan maintains.

It was argued at the hearings that Tower and Optimist allowed some parents the capability to keep track of their children from their home, and younger children couldn't be allowed to make the trek to KC Park without supervision.

Higlin and Porter agreed that it's nice to have a park within earshot, just across the street or next door, but they said it isn't fair to the rest of Mandan's residents to maintain these parks for just a few people, when other areas don't have the same advantage.

"We've got an area of the town where there are four parks within just a few blocks of each other," Porter said. "There are other areas where people would just love to be within two blocks of a park, but don't have that opportunity."

The district is attempting to set a standard of having a two-acre park within a half mile radius of every residence, Higlin said. This serves roughly 800 to 1,000 Mandan residents. Currently the district maintains 385 acres of green space, which includes parks, trails, golf course and ball fields. It has a staff of six full-time people, which during peak use is expanded to 15 with temporary positions.

Should the district board decide to drop the parks, Tower park would be returned to the city, which signed it over to the park district to maintain as a park in the mid-1960s. The property which makes up Optimist park would likely be offered to adjacent landowners. Higlin said that some of the land is so steep and overridden by trees and brush, the landowners wouldn't want it.

The district is also planning to add more parks as Mandan continues to grow, particularly to the southeast and northwest. With the Mandan School Board having chosen a new spot for a junior high, the park district will be looking to provide green space within the school's vicinity.

"Mandan's been experiencing a housing boom with 400 to 500 new houses built in the last eight years. We're looking at putting in a three- to five-acre park near Lincoln Elementary School and a new park in the Marina Bay area " Higlin said. "One of the problems we're facing is that the new parks will be so spread out, since that's what's happening with residential development. That means a lot more transportation of equipment and time spent getting from one park to another."

Porter says the board will make a decision on Tower and Optimist parks at the March meeting of the district board.

"I'm happy with the way the process has worked. All along we've stressed the concept of park quality versus quantity," Porter said.

(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@bismarcktribune.com.)