Bulldozers and dump trucks have temporarily taken over a popular Harlingen park.
A Texas Parks & Wildlife Department grant allowed the City of Harlingen to buy almost 10 acres of land to expand Pendleton Park off Grimes Avenue and Morgan Boulevard.
The park’s tennis center and barbeque pavilion are getting major upgrades that are expected to be completed by March 2010.
Harlingen Parks & Recreation Department Director Jeff Lyssy told Action 4 News that the grant money is also being used for much more.
"We're real excited to add a half-mile walking trail here at Pendleton Park,” he said. “We're also going to have some picnic stations. We're gonna upgrade a ballfield. We're going to add a multi-purpose field in as well as a new concrete basketball court."
La Feria resident Joe de la Garza and his son Devon come to Pendleton Park for the children's tennis academy.
De la Garza said he's going be patient throughout the construction.
He hopes that they mean a better tennis center and more tournaments.
"It's a little inconvenient, but like anything, it'll be better when everything is completed,” De la Garza said. “At the moment, it's a little inconvenient but..construction was inevitable. It had to be done."
Lyssy told Action 4 News that most of the park will be closed throughout the construction but that the Pendleton Swimming Pool and half of the tennis courts will remain open.
He assured the public that it will be worth the wait.
"Pendleton's always been a heavily-used park, so this upgrade is going to be a major facelift,” he said. “We really look forward to opening this park up again to the general public in early 2010.”
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