GREEN: The long-awaited opening of the city’s new Central Park will happen Saturday with an early splash.
The 8.1-acre park will be open at daybreak with the splash pads being turned on at 11 a.m.
The new park, which cost $5.3 million to create, has an entry off Steese Road and is adjacent to the Central Administration Building at 1755 Town Park Blvd.
“We just celebrated our annual two-day FreedomFest and now we are opening Central Park, which is an outstanding facility,” Green Mayor Gerard Neugebauer said.
He said all will be ready for the opening, which will include a ceremony at 5 p.m. followed by a concert by the NEO Jazz Orchestra.
Food vendors also will be at the site, he said.
The park features a 1-mile walking path, a 500-person amphitheater, a playground and a plaza for the city’s farmers market, which will take place from 3:30 to 7:30 every Tuesday evening from July 12 through Sept. 27.
In addition, a splash pad at the park that allows water play for as many as 100 children will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Labor Day, weather permitting.
A community building also is available for rental. Reservations for the hall, which can accommodate about 125 people, will be accepted beginning July 11.
Most of Central Park is open to four-legged friends as well.
Dogs are permitted — except in the concrete seating area of the amphitheater, the splash pad and the playground. Pooches must be on 6-foot leashes at all times.
The state legislature recently approved a capital budget that included $400,000 for the city of Green to support the project.