By TONY GUERRERO
Hays Post
In memory of a friend and with a vision to bring more recreation to Hays youth, Leigh Purdy is looking to establish the Cody Joseph Younger Memorial Paintball Park.
"Our community is already very famous for Frisbee golf, and I would really like to see it famous for paintball because there is nothing like this in the area," Purdy said.
The paintball committee met on Wednesday.
Two possible locations are under consideration: a preferred K-State–owned triangle of land near Old 40 by the Dusty Glassman Ballfields and a privately owned site near the 183 bypass, near residential areas.
Purdy noted the private property option could take a for-profit approach, which differs from her original vision of offering a free park. If the K-State site moves forward, she said attendees could likely use the nearby ballfield restrooms with support from the Hays Recreation Commission, which has already expressed interest in the project.
The nearest paintball facility is in Salina, and Purdy said her proposed park would not only offer a new recreational option for Hays families but could also attract visitors from across the region.
Purdy envisions a bring-your-own-gear, play-at-your-own-risk setup similar to a skate park, with the option to host tournaments. She discussed potential layouts, equipment and playing environments with James McCord, who has experience in paintball.
"The Think Tank prize money can completely cover the materials I put down, but if more wanted to be done, I know there are grants I can file," Purdy said.
They also discussed partnering with local suppliers to help launch the project. Purdy said the Hays Recreation Commission has shown interest in collaborating to create competitive leagues.
Purdy said the public park would include posted rules and be maintained and managed by volunteers who would receive benefits for their service.
"I would hope that if there were to be things we want to put inside the park, or swap out, that we would have a committee," she said. "But hopefully we're building it low-maintenance enough that it wouldn't be something we'd have to do a lot."
Purdy shared results from a public survey indicating interest in various competition formats, prize options, and age and skill divisions. The top game preferences were capture the flag, elimination and speedball.
Purdy highlighted responses from a public survey that showed interest in competition formats and age or skill divisions, as well as desired prizes. The most popular game types were Capture the Flag, elimination and speedball.
Neal Younger and Carolyn Younger, the parents of Cody Joseph Younger, were also present for the discussion of the piantball facility in their son's honor.
"Let's do this paintball park and give our kids something to do," Neal said.
You can follow the Cody Joseph Younger Memorial Paintball Park Facebook page for updates.
Anthony Hurla earned second place at the Think-Tank Throwdown with a similar paintball park proposal. He and Purdy initially planned to collaborate on the project, but Purdy said Hurla has since moved away and is no longer able to take part.