Milford City Council voted to approve the Riverside I and II park master plan at their regular meeting Oct. 7.

"We approved the basic concept for the park ... The plan isn't finalized, but we wanted something concrete to look at and work from," said Charlene Hinners, council member and the council liaison for the Parks and Recreation Commission.

The approved park plan includes an amphitheater, Main Street gateway garden and information kiosk, a play area for children, an active area with basketball and rock climbing, multiple shelters with views of the Little Miami River and river access areas for canoes and kayaks, to name a few.

"(Council) feels that there are a lot of crucial elements in this plan ... we want to use the river and involve the whole city," Hinners said.

Although the plan has been approved, Hinners stressed that changes can still be made.

"There are multiple groups within the city who want to do certain things with the park and we want to work with those groups for something we all agree on," Hinners said.

In an effort to include those groups, Mayor David Hunter has created an ad hoc committee to investigate the different ideas for the park plan and help bring those ideas to council.

"The committee won't have any authority, but they'll be out there figuring out what people want and what all the different ideas are," Hunter said. "The committee will bring those ideas forward and we'll do our best to incorporate what we can."

Hunter said even though there are changes to be made, approving a basic plan was essential to move forward with the project.

"You have to have a plan approved to apply for grant money, but, like with any plan, it will always be a work-in-progress," he said.