Baldwin County opens new playground in Oconee Heights with grant funding

Commissioner Emily Davis says the new space will give children a safe place to play and support community improvements in Oconee Heights.

BALDWIN COUNTY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – All children should have the opportunity to play outside in a safe environment, and that’s one reason Baldwin County opened a new playground in Oconee Heights.

The county was recently granted money to build a new gated playground in Oconee Heights, for children to play and feel safely.

The new Baldwin County playground was funded by a $50,000 grant from T-Mobile to provide the community with a safe gated space where kids can play close to home. Commissioner Emily Davis says this new play area will help keep down juvenile crime.

“They’ll have something to do in the evenings,” she said. “Because it’s going to be well lit at night, but it won’t be open at night. We will have video coverage here, and they can look forward to something, after their snack and homework, they can come down and enjoy the park.”

Davis believes if children can get back to being kids, it will help with their self-esteem and mental health.

“The children over here have nowhere to go as far as a playground,” she said. “So, I think it’s going to improve the fact that they can be out and be healthy. Even when schools not in and there not having play time, and PE, this can help them continue to have a healthy life, to feel better about themselves. Release the tension, believe it or not children have stress. They can come play and release that, so when they get home, they’ll be too tired to cry…just go to sleep”, said Davis.

Davis also says Baldwin County received a grant from senator Jon Ossoff’s office to help improve all of Oconee heights for children to grow up and flourish in a safe neighborhood.

“This whole area is going to be revitalized,” she said. “It’s going to be amazing over here. With the one-way streets, bike trails, sidewalks off Vincent Highway to the war veteran home. Then we’ll have a walking path, bike path, streetlights from here past the dairy queen and roses shopping center.”

Commissioner Davis added that Oconee Heights was recently awarded $1.25 million for sewer improvements and replacing substandard homes.