News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The City of Cookeville will reopen playgrounds at city parks Saturday.
Leisure Services Director Rick Woods said as warmer weather returned, demand to use the playgrounds has increased.
“We have a lot of requests, a lot of interest, and a lot of people anxious to play,” Woods said. “It’s beautiful weather. Our numbers seemed to have stabilized somewhat in this community in terms of the spread of the disease, and people have gotten accustomed to social distancing.”
Despite the reopening of the playgrounds, Woods said the popular water fountain and splash pad at Dogwood Park will remain closed. He said social distancing in the smaller area would be difficult.
“We don’t think that social distancing is going to be able to be realistically practiced in the fountain area,” Woods said. “So we have not decided to turn that on at this point because of the requirement of social distancing.”
Woods said city officials tried to balance public demand with a decreasing number of COVID cases in the area as they made their decision.
“The decision has been based partially on our numbers and the number of cases we see and the spread of the disease in this community,” Woods said.
Woods said users are encouraged to bring hand sanitizer and use it frequently and liberally. Playgrounds will be cleaned daily, but cannot be cleaned after every use.
In addition to the fountain remaining closed, paddle boat, kayak, and canoe rentals at Cane Creek Park will remain unavailable. Picnic shelter reservations have resumed at Cane Creek for Saturdays and Sundays with fewer tables to assist with social distancing.
