WINDHAM – After presenting two conceptual plans in April of the 123-acre Donna Beth Lippman Park surrounding Chaffin Pond in North Windham, design consultants returned Tuesday night to present the Windham Town Council with a unified plan divided into six phases that would cost about $2 million to develop.

Bob Metcalf, of Portland-based Mitchell & Associates, said the new plan focuses on ball fields, lighting, a concession stand and about 215 parking spots to accommodate sporting events. It also incorporates more natural features such as a dog park, walking trails, a fishing dock, canoe and kayak rentals, and a boat ramp.

The bulk of the $2.1 million cost, which Metcalf described as “the big ticket number,” related to the ball fields and lighting, which together cost an estimated $750,000.

The Lippman Park property consists of 123 acres and was previously owned by the Portland Water District as a back-up water source until the sale last year. In return for reimbursing Windham’s $405,000 purchase price from the district, Martin Lippman, a seasonal Standish resident who owns several commercial properties in the area including three abutting the park parcel, secured rights to 10 acres of the parcel and requested any future park be named after his wife, Donna Beth. Although he couldn’t build on the acreage, neither could Windham since Lippman would need the 10 acres for septic system density calculations if he were to develop the three adjoining properties.

While Windham avoided the initial purchase price for the open space in an otherwise urban North Windham, the town would be financially responsible should it want to develop the property into a park.

The council decided by the end of the meeting that their next step is continued refinement of the plan in coming weeks. How to pay for the park – especially if the park is used for ball fields, which some councilors warned could be expensive to build and maintain but others described as necessary due to a lack of public fields in Windham – was discussed at length.

“Simple. Where’s the money coming from? Anybody? Where’s the money coming from?” asked Councilor Tommy Gleason.

After a long pause from his fellow councilors, Councilor Matt Noel responded saying there are three likely sources, “I think that’s a question for the council. That’s a policy decision, whether it’s coming from user fees, whether it’s coming from fees collected by the Parks and Rec [department], whether it’s coming from taxes.”

Regarding the possibility of generating park user fees, Town Manager Tony Plante reminded councilors that the terms of the Lippman contract requires free public access, “but in that agreement we reserve the right, and they agree, that if there were particular programs or services that we could charge for – not simply walking into the park and enjoying the trails, but if you want organized play on a field or use of concessions or canoe and kayak rental – those are all things we could generate fees for.”

While strategies for payment are undetermined, councilors already seemed to be in agreement that the park would be built over a period of years, following the six-phase approach presented by Mitchell & Associates.

“The adoption of the concept doesn’t mean it’s going to be built overnight,” said Council Chairman Scott Hayman. “There’s nothing that says we can’t pick and choose a few items from Phase I and say this is what we want do. And Phase I doesn’t have to happen all in the same year. I mean, this is going to take some time. It’s not going to happen overnight…I think everyone knows that’s the case.”