Hattiesburg, Mississippi – On Thursday, January 14, city and county officials were joined by community leaders to break ground on the latest Your Penny at Work Project, a splash pad at Dewitt-Sullivan Park. It will be the first large-scale, publicly accessible splash area in the city, and it will be located in the Palmers Crossing community.

The plans for the splash pad include 3D-elements and decorative features like music notes and railroad tracks, which pay tribute to the Palmer’s community.

The total cost for the project is $225,000 and is fully funded by the 1-cent restaurant and hotel/motel tax passed by voters in April of 2019 for parks and recreation projects.

“Aside from cooling down, splash pads offer opportunities for children to develop sensory and motor skills. They promote community,” said Mayor Toby Barker. “They afford children opportunities to socialize. They are less expensive with less liability than a traditional pool. And as we have looked at other cities in the Gulf South, they certainly promote tourism in a community by having this amenity available.”

This is the seventh project of 17 committed for funding under the 1-cent restaurant and hotel/motel tax passed by voters in April of 2019. 

Barker added, “Every dollar that will fund this project will come from the 1-cent parks and recreation tax. For that, we say thank you to our residents. This is one more example of your penny at work.”

Thanks to an inter-agency agreement with the Forrest County Board of Supervisors, it is also the second amenity that the City of Hattiesburg has added to the park, a county-managed public space. The first of which is a pavilion that was later named in honor of longtime Palmer’s community member, Frankie R. Benton, who passed away in late 2020. 

Ward 5 Councilman Nicholas Brown added, “When I ran for office, I promised to advocate for more projects in Ward 5. This and the pavilion are an example of that. I’m proud to serve the citizens of Hattiesburg and I look forward to bringing more parks and recreation programming to the area for our youth.”

Additional Your Penny at Work Projects include:

• Thames Elementary gym renovation as a shared use space
• Renovation and upkeep of the Hattiesburg Community Arts Center
• Lighting improvements at Tatum Tennis Court Complex
• Basketball and tennis courts behind Ebenezer Church, a shared-use space
• Walking trail extension at Duncan Lake
• Batting cages at Vernon Dahmer Park

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