Fulton to renovate Memorial Park

This proposed plan for renovation of Memorial Field into a downtown park includes a number of features Fulton residents have said they would like to see, with the spray ground being the most popular. The Parks and Recreation Department is researching costs to figure out which elements the city can afford with its $100,000 budget.
This proposed plan for renovation of Memorial Field into a downtown park includes a number of features Fulton residents have said they would like to see, with the spray ground being the most popular. The Parks and Recreation Department is researching costs to figure out which elements the city can afford with its $100,000 budget.

Memorial Field will have a new look soon.

The city council approved a plan to renovate the area into an urban park during its regular meeting on Oct. 11. Parks and Recreation Director Clay Caswell already has begun pricing the various elements being considered for the park - including a spray ground, a concrete stage, a shelter, a fountain and a playground - so the city may begin moving forward with plans.

Caswell conducted an online survey on the city's website asking residents what they would like to see or would use in a new downtown park. Of the 129 who responded, 82.9 percent said they felt Fulton would benefit from having a downtown park at Memorial Field; 82.2 percent said they would use such a park at least five times a year.

Asked which of a list of park amenities they would prefer, 84.5 percent checked spray ground, 82.2 percent playground, 76.7 percent voted in favor of a walking trail loop, 62.8 percent would like to see a shelter, 55.8 percent a gazebo and 43.4 percent a performance area.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.