Does Patterson want a pocket park in the old downtown?
City council members are seeking input from Patterson residents on the fate of the project.
“I want us to do it,” said Mayor Dedi Thomas. “We’ve already started on revitalizing downtown, people bought buildings with plans toward renovating them and then with COVID all that stopped and went to the devil. We need to start it again or it is going to go to nothing.”
The council voted at their regular meeting Thursday to table a final decision on the project until January to give time for residents to give input on whether the city should proceed with the project.
Patterson received a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Redevelopment Funds (RDF) in April for a new pocket park in the old downtown.
The city had received a RDF grant in the amount of $108,392 for the development of the pocket park. Under the terms of the grant, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) would provide 35 percent of the costs. Patterson would be required to provide $197,455 (or 65 percent) of the $305,847 needed for the project.
The CDBG-RDF funds can be used for rehabilitating blighted areas.
Cost concerns led to a called meeting in October in which the city asked Michael Jacobs of the Southern Georgia Regional Commission to see if DCA would assist the city more with the project. Jacobs said DCA was reluctant to do so, but agreed to a 50/50 split. The city’s share will now be about $153,000.
Councilman David Smith asked for a final decision to be delayed until after the first of the year to allow time for citizen input. The council agreed to delay action until that time.
Plans call for the pocket park to be located in the brick shell of an old building in the historic business district on Railroad Avenue.
The pocket park will be located at 5652 A and B West Railroad Avenue. It will feature patios with umbrellas, landscaping in planters, lighting on poles and strings, brick-paved walkways, restrooms and storage areas.
A restaurant had been planned for the building next door to the pocket park, though the name of the restaurant or its owners have never been disclosed. Mayor Thomas announced at Thursday’s called meeting the plans for the restaurant have fallen through.
The restrooms and storage area of the project would be separate and would not be part of the CDBG-RDF grant. The City of Patterson would be responsible for building the bathrooms and storage area. Estimated cost of that phase of the project is about $408,000.
