Marietta’s Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department has about $1.5 million left over from the $25 million parks bond approved by voters in 2009. At last week’s committee meeting, Parks Director Rich Buss outlined the repairs, improvements and expansions he would like to see those funds cover.
Buss said in addition to the $25 million, the city received a premium of about $1.7 million, and more money was raised by purchasing properties, charging rent and then selling them.
Councilwoman Michelle Cooper Kelly, who also chairs the parks committee, lauded Buss and city staff for managing the cash wisely, leading to the surplus. Buss said a large portion of the additional funds came from the decision to hire a parks expert as a city employee rather than relying on outside consultants, which would have been more expensive.
The proposed projects would impact parks across the city and range in scope from simple painting and roof repairs to building a disc golf course.
The committee voted 2–0 to move the funding request to the full council minus the disc golf course with Kelly and Councilman Andy Morris in favor. The committee’s third member, Councilman Reggie Copeland, was not present.
Wildwood Park Disc Golf Course
Wildwood Park, which is off South Cobb Drive near Life University, could someday be home to Cobb’s newest disc golf course, but maybe not anytime soon.
Buss said this would be the largest and most expensive project on the list and funding may not be available for another year. The committee expressed interest, but tabled this portion of the request until more information on the course and its cost is presented.
Disc golf is similar to golf, but instead of hitting a ball toward a hole, players aim to toss a disc, or Frisbee, across a course and hit a target. Like golf, it is often played on a course with nine or 18 “holes.”
Buss said the Cobb County Disc Golf Club has been reaching out to the city for years and offering to help with construction and maintenance. He said the course would likely be popular with students at nearby Life University and Kennesaw State University, and cited the popularity of the course at west Cobb’s Oregon Park, where people travel from surrounding areas to come play.
The course would also bring a new paved parking lot and restroom facilities to the park. Currently it is served by a gravel lot and porta-potty. Restrooms would require building a water line, which could also mean running water for the dog park there.
The parks bond allocates $300,000 to Wildwood Park, and city staff says another $225,000 would be needed for the course’s development. Buss proposed moving $200,000 from Burruss Nature Park’s bond allocation to go toward the project’s completion.
Chairwoman Kelly said she has gotten many requests for a disc golf course and thinks it would be a great addition to the city, but would like to see more information on the course, its funding and potential grants before voting on it.
“I think we need to have a broader conversation with council, and perhaps not tonight, but once you’ve got an idea of what’s going to happen with Burruss, then you can say ‘This is the amount for Burruss and this is what we need to reallocate for Wildwood,’ and we can make that decision at that time,” she said.
Staff is expected to present further plans at a later date.
Glover Park upgrades
The park at the heart of Marietta Square could be getting spruced up. Part of that will be an extensive pruning of the trees there.
“We have so much shade in the park now because when it was renovated in ’86, all those trees were fairly small, now they’re very tall and shading a lot of stuff that just doesn’t grow, it’s not in the environment it was when it got planted,” Buss said. “So we really want to refresh the landscaping in there and do some irrigation repairs to support that.”
Buss also hopes to repaint the fence surrounding the park, and if there are funds remaining, put a new coat of paint on the playground equipment there.
Glover Park’s bond allocation is $175,000.
Kelly said she thinks the playground area should be a top priority.
“I would say for Glover Park, that’s money well spent as one of our most popular parks, so if we need to add additional dollars to do the depot area, I’d like to see us do that, so maybe look at the cost of having that done,” she said.
Laurel Park repairs
The exhibition tennis court at Laurel Park off Whitlock and west of the Square is popular among ball machine renters because they can smash the balls without worrying about them flying into other courts.
It’s not so popular for league play, Buss said, because of significant cracks in its surface.
The park’s other 12 courts were renovated in 2000.
In addition, the roof on the building is nearing the end of its lifespans and have suffered several hailstorms, requiring frequent spot repairs to prevent leaks. Staff recommends replacing the roof along with two aging HVAC units.
The bond allocation for Laurel Park is $1.2 million.
Other proposed projects
- Replace HVACs and repair roof leaks at Custer Park Sports and Fitness Center
- Recoat the interior of the fountain at Flournoy Park and renovate its pump house, prune vegetation to open up the view of the fountain from the street
- In Atherton Square, create a third decorative entryway on the east end of Depot Street near Hemingway’s to match the two at either end of McNeel Alley.
- In July, emergency plumbing repairs were needed to fix a collapsing sewer line at Lawrence Street Recreation Center. The costs were covered by the city’s general fund, but they could be paid back with parks bond money.
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