Lighting, Playground Items Coming To South Carter Park

Sparta is nearing completion on new lights for South Carter Park’s walking trail and city officials are preparing to install new playground equipment next.

Mayor Jerry Lowery said the lights will allow the walking trail to be safer and see use later in the evening. Lowery said he hopes that addition will be complete by the end of September.

“We’re now installing lighting, we’re running the wires, and we’re real close to catching up with that,” Lowery said. “I think it will move quicker once the mowing season, we’ve got a lot people busy with doing some of the things while the weather’s good.”

Lowery said they recently finished the design phase for the playground equipment and expect it to arrive by late November. Lowery said City Administrator Tonya Tindle previously inspected the park and found that much of the old, wooden equipment was rotting and becoming unsafe.

“We know they need new equipment,” Lowery said. “So we just think that the people, we’ve got equipment coming for all ages from two years old to five years old and then older children as well.”

Lowery said the cost for playground equipment came in higher than they expected, but the city’s aldermen chose to purchase it anyways.

“The longer we wait, the more things cost anyways,” Lowery said. “So we thought this is the best time to do it and it’s needed as well.”

Lowery said they adjusted the plan to include a swing set after it was repeatedly requested by the public.

“It might be a little more expensive to put some swings in, but we’re adding some swings,” Lowery said.

Lowery said he hopes the new equipment will be ready for the public to enjoy by January 1.

Lowery said they also purchased new playground equipment for Wallace-Smith Park across the street from South Carter Park.