Hi Newtown Park Lights Supporters!
A lot has happened since our last email regarding Newtown Park updates, and we wanted to fill you all in. First off, welcome to the nearly 300 new signees that have signed the petition in the past 10 days! It is exciting to see growth in the support for lighting our park, and we look forward to seeing your passion toward bringing this project to completion.
In the Johns Creek Master Plan draft completed on January 4th, there are budget line items for adding lights in the coming years at Newtown (page 91)! Specifically, $250,000 is budgeted in 2025 for adding lights to the pickleball/tennis area and $250,000 in 2024 for the lacrosse, dog park, and basketball areas. (While the picture just states lacrosse field and tennis, I emailed the consultant and he confirmed that those budgets include the whole areas) There is also a line item to add lights to the soccer field in 2028 for $250,000. This is great news! While it is by no means guaranteed to happen, it is great to see that the consultant has used our feedback and their expertise to recommend lights to the city. Keep reading to hear what has happened since...
We heard that on the morning of January 5th, the parks consultant walked Newtown Park with some members of the city council and the RPAC (Recreation and Parks Advisory Committee). One of the RPAC members in attendance has been very vocal on the needs of the residents in the neighboring houses. Following this date, some of the messaging regarding the lighting of Newtown Park has changed.
On January 5th and 9th, the parks plan consultant hosted two public comment sessions to hear feedback on their draft plan for the park. Thank you to everyone who attended and spoke! He mentioned how Cauley Creek Park would be coming online in 2023 with evening lights, and that they anticipate this meet some of the demand for evening activities in Johns Creek. He also proposed adding lights at Shakerag Park if demand isn't fully met from Cauley Creek. After these two projects are complete, he proposed a "wait and see" approach at other parks before adding lights to see if the demand justifies adding lights at Newtown. This is despite the line items in his recommendation to add lights at Newtown in the next two years.
In the City Council work session on January 10th, the consultant recommended the same plan to "wait and see" for lights at Newtown Park. Mayor Bradberry echoed the consultant's stance that we should finish Cauley Creek first, then reevaluate the need to light even just the lacrosse/tennis part of the park, "if and when that makes sense". The mayor recommended the exterior fields (baseball/soccer) be taken off the table for lighting consideration. Councilman Tunki even requested that all lighting for Newtown Park be removed from the recommendations entirely.
If is extremely frustrating to see the community and consultant recognize the need for lighting the park, to then hear some of the city council discount the recommendations made by the consultant that our tax dollars paid for. The suggestion to see if Cauley Creek meet demand for lights fails to consider that Newtown is up to 40 minutes away from that location during rush hour. For residents living especially in the southwest side of the city, Cauley Creek is not a reasonable option for them to use due to distance. Their suggestion to light Shakerag park if demand is still not met is laughable, as Shakerag is three minutes away from Cauley Creek. For a city whose goal is to retain younger families, grow youth sports, and promote healthy lifestyle choices, it is confusing why this recommendation, or even just the north side of the park, is not being seriously considered.
The next month will be a critical time for our initiative. The consultant has now wrapped up their plan, and the ball is in city council's court. In the next month or so, they will be going on their council retreat, where they will discuss budgets and plans for the city for the upcoming year and beyond. It is vital that city council hears our voices and understands the need for lights at Newtown. Please consider emailing the Johns Creek city council, posting on social media, and sharing with your friends and neighbors. You can also leave a comment card at the bottom of this city parks website. Unless the city council hears the need for lights, they will assume that the nearby neighborhood is the only interested party in this discussion.
Thank you as always for your support!
Mayor John Bradberry: john.bradberry@johnscreekga.gov
Councilman Tunki: dilip.tunki@johnscreekga.gov
Councilwoman Skinner: stacy.skinner@johnscreekga.gov
Councilman Erramilli: bob.erramilli@johnscreekga.gov
Councilman Coughlin: chris.coughlin@johnscreekga.gov
Councilman DiBiase: larry.dibiase@johnscreekga.gov
Councilwoman Elwood: erin.elwood@johnscreekga.gov