MOUNT ZION - R.V. "Skinny" Fletcher died in 1969, but his contributions to the Mount Zion community didn't end there.

"Skinny wasn't one to seek the limelight but did his deeds behind the scenes," said Helen Seay, 92. Seay's father, Sidney Smith, and Fletcher were first cousins.

Visitors to the Mount Zion District Library or the Mount Zion Intermediate School, have, perhaps unknowingly, benefited from his generosity. They sit on land once owned by Fletcher and willed to Mount Zion Township to be used for the public good. He also sold the land used for the high school to the Mount Zion School District.

Construction is under way on the latest addition to the list, the first phase of a new 24-acre community park that will be named after the farmer and longtime township road commissioner.

The first phase of Fletcher Park will include the construction of the main entrance and parking lot, an enclosed pavilion, an open pavilion, an amphitheatre, trails and two bridges to span the existing pond.

Playground equipment that will entertain 135 kids at a time already has been purchased.

The ambitious goal is to have the buildings in place and the site prepped in time for the community's Blue Ribbon Day event in July 2010, although 2011 might be more realistic.

Residents expressed their desire for a central park large enough to host community gatherings as part of an Our Town survey conducted in 2000.

"It's a facility that we are lacking and need," said Judy Justice, director of parks and recreation. "It will be a destination place and bring people to Mount Zion. It's very exciting."

The initial phase is being financed with a $400,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and $2.5 million from the sale of bonds by the village. The village also is seeking donors to offset some of the costs.

"We are doing this without a tax increase," village Treasurer Julie Miller said, noting existing revenue streams are sufficient to meet the 20-year payment requirements.

The park also will become the new home for the Sulphur Springs School building. Justice anticipates the former one-room schoolhouse, donated to the village by developer Steve Lewis, will serve as an on-site nature/information center.

The architect's rendering of the park also includes tennis courts and a public swimming pool.

While a public pool ranked high on the Our Town survey, Village Administrator Jerry Potts said a second survey is being planned to determine the extent of the interest and how to pay for its construction and continued operation. Financing options include using property taxes or membership fees. The survey also will seek additional suggestions about any other features the park should include.

"It's still not too late to chance some of that," he said.

The proximity of the new park to the high school, junior high and intermediate school isn't lost on Mount Zion School District Superintendent Darbe Brinkoetter.

Of course, there is the educational benefit of having such a facility nearby, where students can play, learn about nature and stage outdoor performances.

Then there's the prospect of regulation tennis courts that would enable the school's tennis teams to host home matches, something that isn't possible with the village's two existing courts.

But Brinkoetter is most excited about the additional parking that will become available near the intermediate school, which is used for a variety of large district gatherings such as grade school Christmas programs and band concerts.

"The township and the village have been very blessed by Mr. Fletcher's generosity," said John Trusner, Mount Zion Township supervisor, expressing his satisfaction with how the land has been used.

Working with the village on the park has other benefits that will pay off in the future, Trusner said.

Of the 91 acres willed to the township, 25 acres remain. Trusner said that land likely will be used as a cemetery once the current cemetery on Woodland Drive is full.

When the time comes to develop the cemetery, the township will benefit financially because much of the costly infrastructure put in by the village will be readily accessible.

Justice, who is geared up for another busy season of summer recreation activities, can only imagine what the future holds when the park is complete.

While she is grateful for the willingness of local groups and the school district to host many of her summer activities, she looks forward to having a place to call her own.

Such flexibility would allow for expanded and year-round program offerings. It also would allow her to develop programs that would benefit the community's senior population.

Justice already is creating a file of program information that, before Fletcher Park, would have been tossed in the garbage.

But her thoughts aren't all about business. She's also looking forward to spending some peaceful time reading next to the pond.

Getting to and from the new Fletcher Park and the three Mount Zion School District buildings around it could be getting a little easier.

The village of Mount Zion is the recipient of $1.229 million in federal stimulus funds that will be used to build a Henderson Street bypass. The village's portion of the project is estimated at $508,000.

The new road will run south of the intermediate school and connect with an existing road between the Mount Zion District Library and Dawson & Wikoff Funeral Home. The bypass would eliminate school-related traffic congestion at Henderson and Main streets.

The idea for the road has been around for several years. Former state Rep. Julie Curry secured a $60,000 grant in 1999 to offset the cost of engineering for the project.

Village Administrator Jerry Potts anticipates the project going out for bid in January, with construction beginning next spring.

Also on the drawing board is the planned enhancement of Henderson Street in front of the schools. That project calls for upgrading the road to a concrete surface, with curb and gutters to the south entrance of the junior high building.

Potts said money for the project is included in the state's recent construction bill, but whether that money will become available remains unknown. He also noted the village didn't account for the project in its recently passed budget, meaning construction is at least a year away unless a budget adjustment is made.

- Scott Perry