SARATOGA SPRINGS -- With a $520,075 grant from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and the Utah Division of State Parks and Recreation, Saratoga Springs is planning to move forward to improve the city marina so more people can use it.

"We applied for this grant for the purpose to complete the dikes that extend out from the shore and create a harbor that protects the boat ramp," said Ken Leetham, Saratoga Springs city manager."That will only use a portion of the funds.We would like to have the council's consent to amend the contract to add an additional phase of the marina construction also that would include a parking lot expansion."

Leetham said the grant was fairly open ended, so they would only need the council's permission to make the changes.

Leetham also pointed out that the City Council had designated $265,425 for marina improvements.That money came from Parks Capital Projects money which is raised by impact fees and can only be used for improvement projects.

Mark Edwards, Saratoga Springs public works director, explained that the parking lot can currently accommodate up to 14 trucks with trailers, but up to 48 boats can use the marina at any point.Edwards explained the parking lot was the real bottleneck around use at this point.

City Councilman Bud Poduska also asked about the possibility of a separate ramp for personal watercraft to ease demand on the boat ramp.

Edwards suggested that it was time to re-evaluate the marina's master development plan, to address this and other issues. "This marina has been a work in progress for many years.The park has not evolved; we have added more acreage, and we may want to consider adding additional acreage," he said.

For now, the City Council approved the request to seek bids for the dike improvements as well as a redesign and construction of the parking lot.Edwards said he would hope that much of the work could be done in the off-season when the marina isn't used as much.