Residents traveling down Highway 15 between Decatur and Newton might wonder why construction crews have not yet started work on the anticipated Newton County Veterans Memorial Park.
Johnny Reeves, who is spearheading the Park’s construction, said they are waiting for Mississippi Department of Transportation to come extend a drainage culvert so the Park can be built without posing a danger to visitors.
“We’re going to extend the culvert a few feet so we can back fill in there,” he said.
Reeves said the Newton County Board of Supervisors had offered to install a second culvert, blocking off the current drainage pipe leading from the pond in front of the American Legion Hut; however, MDOT would not allow the county to work on the agency-owned drainage system.
After more than a year since his initial contact with MDOT, Reeves said he had been assured the Memorial Park was at the top of the list of projects, but no word has come down about when the work might be done.
“He said his crews were in another county working, but he’d put us at the top of his list for when they got back to Newton County,” Reeves said.
Reeves said he has heard from several residents who were concerned the Park would no longer be built and wanted to reassure everyone that is not the case. All the engraved bricks ordered for the Park have been delivered, he said, and everyone involved is looking forward to the day work can resume.
