Sparta officials announced the opening of the city’s new splash pad will be delayed until next year due to construction timelines extending into the fall.
Mayor Jerry Lowery said the board will soon decide whether or not to fence off the splash pad.
“There’s a talk of possibility of if we’re going to open up just the playground and wait for splash pad the next year because we’re into, we’re deep into probably October, mid-October to the end of October before splash pad’s even done,” Lowery said. “So, I mean, we’re getting, pushing winter time there.”
Public Works Director Dillard Quick said the playground contractor is expected to finish installing equipment within the next week, followed by a three-week process to lay down turf. Quick said while the curb around the playground is ready for fencing, the splash pad area requires further grading and utility work.
“But the splash pad itself, they want us to wait until they’re completely done to put the curb up on that, that area,” Quick said. “So me and Denny are going to go out there tomorrow and look and see.”
The splash pad will utilize a recycling system to manage water usage. Dillard said the system is designed to recycle and treat approximately 60 percent of the water, with the remainder exiting through the sewer system.
“There’s a huge hole that we put a big, I call it a, it’s like a big septic tank, but it’s, I mean, it’s massive,” Lowery said. “That water’s going to be full, it’s got floats in it, and the water is going to drain back into it.”
Lowery said the board will schedule a work session in the near future to discuss zoning regulations for data centers.
