Orange County solicits feedback for planned Taborfield Park

Design and construction are scheduled to begin soon for a future neighborhood park on a 6.5-acre property located southeast of Reams Road, south of Thatcher Avenue and west of Taborfield Avenue.

Orange County officials held a community meeting Thursday, Sept. 13, at Tibet-Butler Preserve to discuss the type of amenities area residents might desire for the future park.

District 1 Orange County Commissioner Betsy VanderLey said any expressed concerns or suggested amenities would be taken into consideration when the park’s conceptual design plan is drafted.

Meeting attendees requested the Orange County Parks and Recreation Department consider adding amenities such as a dog park, shaded exercise stations, a tennis court, bike racks, community garden, picnic pavilion with a grill, an ADA-accessible playground for older children, a pickleball court, a basketball court and a dedicated parking area.

VanderLey said Orange County usually does not include parking lots in neighborhood parks, because it’s anticipated most visitors would either walk or bike to the park because of their proximity to the park. VanderLey added that Orange County Public Schools will be building a future elementary school directly south of the property and has agreed to allow park visitors to park at their school lot during non-school hours.

As for the requested basketball court, VanderLey said the county usually does not build basketball courts in unstaffed parks but can look into the possibility of building a half-court, instead.

The budget for the future Taborfield Park is $1 million, VanderLey said. 

Architects will present a conceptual design for the park during the next community meeting, which will be held Nov. 15 at Tibet-Butler Preserve.

Anyone interested in taking the park amenities online survey may visit surveymonkey.com/r/TaborfieldPark.