Francis Weston Park is at the center of a City of Thomasville initiative to re-imagine and revitalize neighborhood parks. Together with community leaders, City staff will lead participants through a three-day visioning process April 23-25, 2017, to help spark conversation for how to best utilize the 12-acre park complex. As part of the process, special visual survey boards are now available throughout the community to help gather input that will be included in the final design.
“Having the visual survey displays available in advance of the planning workshops is very important to the overall improvement process for Weston Park,” said Martha Reynolds, Neighborhood Planner. “These displays are intended to help users of the park think beyond what exists now and to instead think about what is possible.”
Park users will have the opportunity to voice their preference on everything from lighting to picnic shelters through the display boards. With enough public input, the desires of the community will become clear, and, Reynolds said, that is exactly why the information gathered by the displays will be vital to the overall design.
“We understand that not everyone will be able to attend the entire three-day event, but everyone will have a chance to choose the features they’d like to see in the park through these visual displays,” she said.
According to Jacqueline Bryant, a resident of the Dewey City neighborhood, the opportunity to be a part of the planning process is one that she appreciates and hopes others will embrace as well. “I have enjoyed being a part of what is taking place in Francis Weston Park,” said Bryant. “The Dewey City neighborhood takes pride in our community and I’d like to see people of all ages become involved in the process.”
Bryant, 81, says she enjoys exercising in the park and feels people of every generation can enjoy something in the greenspace. “Exercise is just one part of living a healthy lifestyle,” she said. “Francis Weston Park is a great place to take my grandchildren, so I’m interested in seeing the upgrades and improvements come together.” She said that the park is used quite a bit for picnics and reunions, so there should be no shortage of people with an interesting in seeing how the space can be improved.
The visual survey boards are available in the following locations:
- City of Thomasville Administrative Office
- Thomas County Public Library
- Douglass School Complex
- Harper Elementary School
- Thomasville YMCA (all locations)
- Mt. Zion Daycare
- Marguerite Neel Williams Boys and Girls Club
- Select Sundays at First Missionary Baptist Church, St. James Primitive Baptist Church, Beulah Hill Baptist Church, St. Luke CME Church.
Those interested in contributing their ideas for Weston Park are invited to join the conversation on Sunday, April 23-Tuesday, April 25, 2017 at the Douglass School Complex. For more information, visit Thomasville.org.