Thursday, January 16, 2025–10:40 a.m.
-David Crowder, WRGA News-
Banty Jones Park in East Rome is getting ready for a major overhaul.
According to Rome Community Development Director Bekki Fox, we could see work begin soon.
“We have a scheduled on-site preconstruction meeting for next Wednesday morning,” she said. “Then after that, I think as passers-by or residents go by, they’ll start seeing some action. There has already been a little bit of action. The park closed to the public on December 9 of last year, a little over a month ago.”
The park looks quite different right now.
“All of the equipment, including the playground, was dismantled and saved for another park that is going to be in North Rome off of North Broad Street,” Fox said. “All of the on-site picnic tables and grills were removed and will be utilized in other parks as needed. I think the only thing that is standing now is an old restroom pavilion-type building, which will be demolished, making way for basically a whole realization of that park, which is going to be phenomenal.”
One of the features of the renovated park will be a splash pad with jets.
“If you know anything about Rome, Downtown Rome, or the Town Green area, you know that is really the only splash pad that we have in place,” Fox added. “It’s very nice, and a lot of kids go and play there, but there’s also some amenities, like the river, that really aren’t actually safe necessarily for kids to be in and jumping around, but they do. This park will be built for safety.”
Other amenities will include open-air pavilions, an amphitheater with seating for small performances, a grilling and picnic area, age-specific playgrounds, a walking track around the whole park, and a flex-lawn for activities such as kicking a soccer ball or throwing a football.