Millersville Borough is going through a phase.

Its plan to renovate Freedom Memorial Park was finalized last year, and the first part of the work is underway.

"It was a long process that our park commission went through in order to get ourselves prepared to start going after some grant funding in order to make some improvements to the park," borough manager Rebecca DeSantis-Randall said. "Our park commission went through the process of working with a consultant to do some visioning, and we did some public outreach to figure out what sort of vision we had for the park going forward."

The tempo of the task will depend on money. Once plans were finalized, the borough began seeking grant funding to bring the project to fruition. The borough recently learned it had been awarded a $75,000 grant from the Department of Community and Economic Development's Greenway Trails and Recreation grant program. Then the borough was notified it had been granted $373,200 from the Community Conservation Partnerships Program administered by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). 

"We're very grateful for that," said DeSantis-Randall.

Phase one of the six-phase process involves focusing on accessibility improvements to the park, as well as working on a new restroom. New playground equipment will be added to the section designed for kids ages 2 to 5.

"If we can get the money for it, our plan is to bang that out in the first phase," DeSantis-Randall said, adding that the goal is to use additional state funding. "(The aim is) to carry it out between next year and this year."

The other five phases include resurfacing the skatepark and basketball courts and adding an adult fitness station and possibly pickleball courts. "We're also hoping to add a walking path from the lower parking lot all the way to the furthest baseball field to help make that baseball field more accessible," said DeSantis-Randall. "A community garden is part of that as well. We got some interest from that from the community during our public outreach during part of the master planning process. Then we also want to add some additional playground equipment for ages 5 to 12." Another goal is to connect the park to any of the local trails.

The borough is trying to adhere to the wishes of the public. "We heard from the park commission and from community members about the different areas of interest," said DeSantis-Randall. "In working with the consultant, we tried to make sure that all of that was included in the plan in some way, shape, or form, so that we're able to hopefully meet everybody's needs."

DeSantis-Randall noted that the entire project is expected to last approximately five years. The borough is not currently seeking contributions from the community. "Our thought right now is let's see what we can get grant funding-wise and see what we're able to match with," said DeSantis-Randall. "Then at that point, we will see if we want to be able to bring in community members or community organizations to help fund different parts of it. We want it to be a cohesive process and not just sort of piecemeal. We're hoping to be able to bring the community in on that part of it once we're solidified about what type of grant funding we're getting for phase one."

DeSantis-Randall added, "We're really excited about the opportunity to bring more things to the park and be able to fit a lot of different people's needs and interests and really continue to make Freedom Memorial Park a focal point of the borough, a focal point for visitors to the borough."

In other news from the borough, Millersville is continuing with its Hometown Heroes banners after a successful first year. "We were able to very, very quickly fill all of the (23) spots," said DeSantis-Randall.

The borough is hoping to add 25 banners in 2026. Applications will be accepted beginning Friday, Jan. 30. Anyone interested can pick up an application at the borough office or go to http://www.millersvilleborough.org. The original banners will hang for three years with no need to renew.

"It is first-come, first-served," said DeSantis-Randall. "Between how well it was received last year and how many folks have been calling and asking about when we're opening up this year, we're hoping to fill those spots relatively quickly."

The applicant and/or the person being honored must be a Millersville Borough resident. "We read the names of all of banner (honorees) at our Veterans Day ceremony," DeSantis-Randall said.