Parks & Rec SPLOST plans
A detailed look at what the department hopes to accomplish with the passage of the proposed 2017 SPLOST package.
A little over $2 million is earmarked for recreation in the proposed $63.8 million special purpose, local option sales tax package.
Voters countywide will decide Nov. 9 if the 1-cent SPLOST will be extended another five years to fund the package.
Kevin Cowling, executive director of the Rome-Floyd Parks and Recreation Department, submitted $5.5 million worth of projects but he’s not disappointed with the $2,026,600 award recommended by the SPLOST Citizens Advisory Committee.
“I’m tickled to death,” he said. “Yes, we had to cut, but it’s going to benefit our community, our department, as a whole. I do feel very lucky to have some being considered.”
Here’s a breakdown of how the recreation money would be spent:
Replace 27 HVAC units, $187,000
All of the heating and air units still using R22 refrigerant would be replaced. The ozone-depleting freon is being phased out and production will end by 2020. Cowling said it’s expensive to repair the air conditioners and difficult to find the freon.
Skate park, $150,000
The skate park at Etowah Park would be modernized with a more urban streetscape and an eye to the future of the sport when it takes its place in the 2020 summer Olympics. Cowling said skateboarders would continue to be involved in the plans.
“We’ll end up bringing in a designer and having another community meeting with the kids to get input,” he said. “Then we’ll design from there and move into the build.”
Roofs, $270,000
The recreation headquarters, housed in the former armory on Shorter Avenue, would get a new roof at the cost of $200,000, and $70,000 would be set aside for the Anthony Center roof in Garden Lakes. Cowling said they both are plagued with leaks.
“The majority of what we’ve put on the SPLOST is either renovations or repairs. Very little on the list is new,” he said.
Ridge Ferry Park, $380,000
The package contains $350,000 to replace the two old playgrounds in the park. The current SPLOST provided funds for the tot lot and boat-based playground and Cowling said this would complete the upgrade.
Another $30,000 would go to pave the north parking area on the other side of the railroad tracks, “to make it more customer-friendly,” Cowling said.
Brushy Branch, $85,000
The small park off Blacks Bluff Road near Cave Spring and the Alabama state line is one of the busiest boat launch and fishing sites in the recreation system, Cowling said.
The earmark would provide money for “a pavilion or two” and a new boat dock that is more durable and easier to maintain.
Dock engineering, $100,000
The money would be used “for any of the engineering that we need,” Cowling said. He expects it to mainly support the Lock & Dam project.
Lock & Dam, $150,000
The bulk of the money, $125,000, would go for new docks at the camping and fishing park on the Coosa River off Blacks Bluff Road.
Cowling said the current dock keeps getting damaged by high water and strong currents. He also plans to put a dock on the other side of the lock — which doesn’t work and can’t be repaired because there are PCBs settled deep in the silt.
“We want to give people more access to the park,” Cowling said. “Bigger boats that come down can’t get over the rocks. We want to give them a take-out point.”
The remaining $25,000 would fund a new roof for the park office.
Senior center kitchen, $50,000
The senior center in Etowah Park would get a major remodel. Cowling said it’s heavily used by the seniors and as a rental for other events.
“We’re hoping to do some work with the flooring, repair the cabinets and upgrade the appliances,” he said.
Park Hokes Park, $400,000
The neighborhood park on Nixon Avenue next to the former Anna K. Davie Elementary School has a small playground and a series of basketball hoops installed on an open concrete pad. Cowling said the money would pay for covered courts similar to those at Shannon and Banty Jones parks.
Shannon Park, $215,000
The earmark contains $65,000 for a bonded rubber surface at the playground and $150,000 for the tennis courts.
“We need to totally remodel them. They’re in very bad shape,” Cowling said.
Midway Park, $39,600
The playground at the Silver Creek park also is in line for a bonded rubber surface. Cowling said the rubber installation reduces maintenance time and costs and makes for safer play.
“This is a repair or renovate list,” he emphasized. “It’s not a want or big-wish list; it’s stuff that has to be done one way or another.”