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December 2012

Annual Candy Cane Hunt to be Held at The Mable House

Come and join the Cobb County Parks, Recreation & Cultural Affairs Department as we celebrate our Annual Candy Cane Hunt at the Mable House Art Center on Saturday, December 1st from 10:00am-12:00pm. The event allows boys and girls 12 and under an opportunity to participate in many holiday activities, such as cookie decorating, marshmallow roasting, and arts and crafts.  Santa is scheduled to arrive and will be available for pictures with the children. For more information, please call (770) 528-8454. Admission and parking are free.

Holiday Lights at East Cobb Park
This special evening features a children’s choir, brass quartet, live music, special guest appearances by Santa Claus and Rudolph, award-wining bell ringers and the lighting of our live 40-foot East Cobb Park tree. Come join us Sunday, December 2nd at 5:00pm and share in the holiday spirit by giving back to our community. The proceeds from this event will go towards refurbishing and enhancing the park, as well as offering you and your neighbors a classic holiday celebration.

Jingles and Jammies

Bring your family to this fun annual holiday event to be held Saturday, December 8th at 10:00am at the Ward Recreation Center. Enjoy brunch, make a gingerbread house, sing Christmas carols, and watch a fun play - "Crink's Christmas". To register, call (770) 528-8885 or register online (activity code 57974). The fee for this event is $10 per person. This is an event that will be enjoyed by the entire family - don't forget to wear your pajamas!!!

2012 'Fun in the Park' Photo Contest Winners Announced

The 'Fun in the Park' Photo Contest is over for 2012 and once again we had a great response! Over 140 photos were submitted in 3 categories - General category, Nature and Wildlife, and Sports and Action. With so many great photos submitted, the panel of 6 judges had a difficult time selecting the winning photographs. Once the scores were tabulated, the following photographers were selected as the 2012 winners:

The panel of judges were photographers from the Cobb Photographic Society and the Paulding Photography Club. Thanks to all the judges for making the selections from numerous outstanding images, and thanks to all the photographers for their participation! Time now to start taking pictures for the 2013 contest!

Eddie Canon Named Professional of the Year

Cobb Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Director Eddie Canon was recently honored as the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association's "Professional of the Year". He was honored by his peers for his leadership, vision, integrity and passion for the Cobb community's recreational programs. Congratulations Eddie!!!

Cub Scout Workshops Offered by Parks

The Natural Resource Management Unit will be hosting two Cub Scout workshops. The Bear workshop will be 'Achievement 5: Sharing Your World with Wildlife'. This workshop will be held Saturday, December 1st from 9:30am-12:00pm at the Wright Environmental Center in Marietta. The Wolf workshop will be 'Achievement 7: Your Living World'. This workshop will be held Saturday, December 1st from 1:30pm-3:30pm at East Cobb Park at the upper pavilion.

Registration for both workshops is underway. Register your den by contacting Kaye Wilson at (770) 528-8824 or kaye.wilson@cobbcounty.org.  In your email please include the leader's name and contact information, pack/den number, workshop planning to attend, and number of scouts planning to attend. The cost is $3.00 per scout and payment will be due by November 9th to reserve your spots. For more information call Kaye Wilson at (770)-528-8824.

SPLOST Projects Update
On March 15, 2011, a referendum on a four-year SPLOST (Special Local Option Sales Tax) was approved by voters. This program will be in effect from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2015. From this SPLOST, Cobb County Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs will be utilizing $82,023,000 for revitalization, facility renovations and upgrades to parks and facilities. Planning, coordinating and scheduling projects are in their early stages, but you will now be able to see some of the work in progress or soon to begin. Here is a list of current projects:

• Design is continuing for the Tennis Center buildings at Terrell Mill, Harrison, and Kennworth Parks. Design is scheduled to be complete in January with submittal to Purchasing to start the advertisement for bidding in February.

• The Notice to Proceed for the design/build of cross-tie retaining wall replacement at Lions Park and Wallace Park has been issued. The construction is scheduled to begin and completed between the end of football season this year and the start of baseball practice in February of 2013.

• Lose & Associates is moving forward with the preliminary design of the redevelopment of Wallace Park.

• The replacement of cross-tie retaining walls and additional parking at Fullers Park has been awarded to Johnson Landscapes. Contracts are being routed and the construction activities will be coordinated with activities in the park and work will be scheduled to minimize inconvenience to park users.

• Contracts have been issued to Brewer Engineering for the design of the fields and concession building replacement at Sewell Park. Design work should begin in December.

• The contract for the design of the pool house and pool at Sewell Park has been awarded to Pope/Partners Architects. Contracts are being routed for signature by the chairman and a Notice to Proceed with the design will be issued upon receipt of the contracts. The current schedule for the pool and pool house renovation is to begin construction immediately following the closing of the pool at the end of the summer in 2013 and be completed in time for the 2014 pool season.

• Construction for the field renovations at Noonday Park is scheduled to begin in December. The park will be closed for construction until late July of 2013.

• The proposals for the lighting design at Tramore and Noonday Parks have been evaluated and McVeigh and Mangum has been selected for these projects. PRCA has prepared the contracts and they are being routed for signature.

• The proposals for the Civic Center infrastructure analysis and improvements are under review by the evaluation committee and a recommendation of award of the contract will be sent to the BOC in December or January.

• Proposals for the design of Wildhorse Creek Park seasonal water feature are under review and will be submitted to the BOC for consideration at the December 13 Board meeting.

• The Powder Springs Park Master Plan preparation is nearing completion. Following the completion of the Master Plan, an RFP will be prepared and issued for the design of the project. Construction at the park is scheduled to begin in 2014.

• Five bids for scoreboards to be placed throughout the park system will be submitted to the BOC for consideration of award in January.

• The proposals for design of improvements at Sandy Plains Park were evaluated and jB+a, Inc. was selected to provide design services. The BOC approved the recommendation and contracts have been sent to jB+a for execution.

• Six proposals for the design of improvements at Hurt Road Park have been received. The proposals have been distributed to the evaluation committee for review.

• The RFP for design of the replacement of three concession/restroom buildings at Fullers Park has been submitted to the Purchasing Department. Advertising is underway and proposals will be accepted December 13, 2012.

• The RFP for design of the improvements at Al Bishop Park has been submitted to the Purchasing Department. Advertising began November 16 and proposals will be accepted December 13, 2012.

• The RFP for design of improvements at Shaw Park has been submitted to the Purchasing Department. Advertising has begun and proposals will be accepted December 13, 2012.

• We are currently working on an RFP for improvements of the infrastructure at Jim Miller Park. The RFP will be submitted to Purchasing once the scope of the work to be included in the RFP is finalized.

These are just a few of the numerous projects that you will see in the next few years updating and revitalizing our parks' system. For a complete listing of projects and updates, see the Splost 2011 web page on the Cobb County website.

Tennis for Juniors (and Adults) at Harrison Tennis Center
Parents, after your child gets started in tennis, learns the basics, etc, then what? Harrison Tennis Center offers an ongoing, year-round program of tennis instruction for those kids who've advanced beyond the beginner/entry level. HTC's Jr. Development program offers two skill level groups: Future Stars and Baseliners. Call Harrison Tennis Center today to schedule an evaluation/assessment visit for your child. A member of HTC's coaching staff will contact you to arrange the visit!

Want to learn the game yourself and make this a family activity? Call Harrison Tennis Center for a schedule of weekday and evening classes, offered to adult beginners and advanced-beginner level players.

To those already thinking ahead to warmer days, contact us early next year regarding our youth summer tennis camps. For information on any tennis program at Harrison Tennis Center, call (770) 591-3151. Hope to see you on our courts soon!

Exciting Classes Offered at Ward Recreation Center

Ward Recreation Center is offering exciting classes this fall. Registration is in progress for Zumba, Hip Hop Dance, Choi Kwang-Do, Piano Lessons for youth and adult, puppy training classes, and traditional Shaolin Kung Fu classes. For more information on Ward programs, please contact Wendy Collins or call (770) 528-8885.