The restroom complex will replace dated restrooms near the softball fields along City Park Drive, Budesky said. The current plan for the older restroom buildings is to raze one and use the other for storage.
A higher priority for the city is to build a larger $250,000 restroom complex with Community Development Block Grant money near the bandshell, Budesky said. That complex would be handicapped accessible and have changing tables.
The 20-foot-by-30-foot picnic pavilion will be built between the tennis courts and softball fields, Budesky said. The pavilion could be rented for family picnics, he said.
The replacement restrooms and pavilion would be built before June 30, 2006, Budesky said.
The city also applied for approximately $150,000 to add amenities to the tot pool at Potterfield Pool, but did not get those funds, Budesky said.
Budesky said he was pleased the city got money for the restrooms and pavilion because applying for Community Parks and Playgrounds Program money is competitive.
Smithsburg Mayor Mildred "Mickey" Myers said "this is a happy day" when she learned about the grant money for the almost 30-acre park.
The grant will pay for the park's first basketball court, second multipurpose field and second pavilion, Town Clerk/Treasurer/Manager Betsy Martin said.
The new pavilion will help with overflow from the existing, larger pavilion, Myers said.
Martin said the town will pay for the park improvements and then get reimbursed by the grant.
The grants were approved Wednesday by the Board of Public Works, which consists of the governor, Comptroller William Donald Schaefer and Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp. The board's duties include approving state money for capital improvement projects except for state roads, bridges and highways.
