It was a vision that began in 2002.

The construction has begun in 2021.

And John Gooden said, “We’re kind of just starting in a way.”

Gooden spoke last Tuesday to his fellow Kingfisher Rotary Club members about the progress and ongoing vision of the Newfield Community Park on the city’s northwest side.

The park will cover several city blocks and will contain - among many other features - a band shell and ampitheater, pond, dog park, arboretum, pump track, playground and a restroom/ concession area.

It’s also intertwined with parts of Kingfisher Trails.

Heavy machinery was on site to dig the pond, which is on the south side of Robberts Avenue and will sit between 8th and 10th streets.

That dirt was used to help raise other parts of the project since it does sit in the flood zone, Gooden said.

The process for the project began nearly 20 years ago.

It’s included buying a number of properties both in a flood plain buyout as well as through private monies.

Parts of it, including the band shell, could be finished by the end of this summer.

Gooden told the Times & Free Press on Thursday that the contract for the band shell’s construction was signed Wednesday.

“I really expect them to be here working on it within a month,” he said.

Other major elements, he said, could be finished by the end of the year, but the park’s overall completion will take some time.

The park is being funded in part by donations - both large and small in scale - as well as a series of grants.

Gooden has written applications for two grants that were already awarded and is awaiting news on a third application, which should be known in June. “Each of those grants has a two-year clock,” he said in using those funds.

The money available helps him determine which parts of the project to fund once the current major ele ments are finished.

“We’ll prioritize them and match them up with expiring money,” he said.

Gooden said while a majority of the park is funded - provided the third grant application is approved - there are things the federal grants won’t cover.

That includes sound and light equipment for the band shell, among other amenities.

He said he’ll start a fundraising drive soon to help pay for those smaller parts.

Gooden answered a number of questions from the audience, but was also on the receiving end of some praise for his “tireless” efforts to boost Kingfisher’s overall profile and image.

“I think your strongest gifts are vision and perseverance,” Rotarian John Johnson said. “The way you’ve been able to pull this off is incredible.”

Gooden credited a number of other people who have been instrumental in helping put the project together. That list included Rotarians Russ Hopkins and Brian Walter.