The children of Ruston will soon have an extra outlet of fun with new additions coming to the parks and recreation sector of the city.
There are plans to bring splash pads to various parks around town. There will be three of them, and each one will be located at a different park– Mayfield Park, Duncan Park and Cook Park.
During construction of phase two for the Ruston Sports Complex, there were plans to have things such as a lazy river, small pool and splash pad. These features had to be cut due to rising costs.
Thanks to grants, Ruston will still be able to have a water feature within the city even after the cuts made to phase two of the sports complex.
Having a strong parks and recreation system is important in helping maintain the quality of life for residents within the area.
“We think that a vibrant downtown is important,” Mayor Ronny Walker said. “We think that a really nice farmer’s market is important. We think that bike trails and walking trails are important. All of those are what most people would refer to as quality of life issues. Well, parks and places for people to go outside and do things are a big component of that.”
The splash pads will be a way for families and friends to be able to spend time together and enjoy the outdoors of Ruston.
“It’s a neat way to have another opportunity for our families and individual kids to be a part of our park system here in Ruston,” Walker said.
The money for these is coming from grants that were allocated to most cities in Louisiana during COVID-19 to help fund parks and recreation ventures. This is not going to cost the taxpayers any money.
Applications for the grant money have been submitted and are currently waiting for approval. It is expected to hear on the approval status at the end of this month. The splash pads will not be completed by this summer, but are planned to be ready in the near future so that families can enjoy them in the summers following 2022.
