Demorest cut the ribbon on its latest capital improvement project. The new park pavilion at Demorest Springs Park took two years and nearly half a million dollars to complete. The facility includes a large open gathering space and public restrooms.
Approximately 50 people attended the ribbon-cutting on Wednesday evening, December 13.
Timeline
The pavilion, adjacent to the Demorest Police Department on Georgia Street, replaced an older structure the city used for storage. One year ago, Demorest tore down that old building, and in April, crews began site preparation for the pavilion.
This past July, the contractor began laying the block. They set the trusses in August and a brick mason finished laying 26,210 bricks at the end of November.
Construction was completed on December 12 when the contractor installed handrails along the steps leading from the pavilion to the park.
Saving money
The city’s Park Committee began planning for the pavilion in March 2021. The original budget set by an engineer/contractor was estimated at just over $800,000, according to Demorest City Manager Mark Musselwhite.
In a bid to save money, the city took over the project last year. Musselwhite oversaw the project, and Utility Director Brian Popham served as project manager. They saved approximately $300,000 by having city employees do some of the work and sub-contracting certain phases of the project.
Currently, the pavilion and restroom have been expensed at $450,000, with just a few invoices remaining to be paid, says Musselwhite. He estimates the remaining cost will be paid by the end of this year.
Demorest used General Fund and SPLOST money to pay for the project. SPLOST covered $90,000 of it.
Praise for employees
“Brian and I worked a heck of a job as a team,” Musselwhite says. He adds that the vendors and subcontractors were first quality, but, “better than that, the city employees who worked on this are better and their work quality is better. Brian leads an excellent crew!”
Musselwhite praises Popham and his crew for their diverse abilities.
“We are blessed to have Brian Popham and his skills and the skill sets (of his crew) being multi-taskers that work on other projects than (just) water and sewer.”
The pavilion, adorned with a cupola, is equipped with three bathroom facilities. The floor was prepped with a non-skid surface to prevent people from slipping and to allow for easier clean-up after events.
The facility is also equipped with multiple cameras inside the common area and outside, overlooking the park as a deterrent to vandalism at the facility and the park itself.
Phase II
The pavilion will be available to the public for events on a first-come, first-serve basis. There is currently no charge to reserve the pavilion. According to Musselwhite, he and the city council will be working on that in 2024.
Wednesday night’s ribbon-cutting was the third such ceremony in Demorest in eight months. At the end of April, the city cut the ribbon on its new city hall, housed in the repurposed Historic Demorest Elementary School. In mid-September, the city opened its new Municipal Conference Center and Court in the school’s renovated auditorium.
During Wednesday’s ribbon-cutting, Musselwhite announced there will be a phase two of the project to further enhance amenities at Demorest Springs Park. Next year, the council and the park committee will discuss what to add. Nothing has been decided at this time.
