Richton shares splash pad funding, operations details
RICHTON — More than two weeks after Richton’s splash pad opened to the public, town officials have released additional information about the project’s operations, funding and construction timeline.
The splash pad, located at 500 Front St., officially opened June 1. Town officials said weather delayed a planned May 26 opening by several days.
According to Mayor Bo Ruffin, the splash pad is scheduled to operate Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. The town says the schedule may change because of holidays, weather or staffing issues.
Admission is $5 per person for either the morning or afternoon session or $10 for a full-day pass. Children age 4 and younger are admitted free. The town accepts card payments only, and a card-processing fee applies.
Rules for the splash pad are posted at the facility. The town notes that operating hours may vary and that “if the gate is open then we are open.”
Ruffin said admission fees help cover electricity, chlorination, water use, maintenance, landscaping, staffing and future improvements to the facility.
According to Ruffin, the town charges admission to help cover operating expenses associated with the splash pad. Nearby Petal uses a different funding model, with a 3% tax on restaurants, hotels and bars helping fund parks and recreation projects, including the city’s splash pad.
Ruffin said the splash pad uses about 1,000 gallons of treated water per hour while operating. At approximately seven hours a day, five days a week, that amounts to about 35,000 gallons weekly, or roughly 140,000 gallonsover four weeks.
Town officials also provided additional details about delays that affected the project’s timeline.
“The initial contractor filed for bankruptcy shortly after the bid award and then the project transitioned to the bonding company which takes due diligence and is very time consuming,” the town said in a written response to RHCJC News. “In turn this then pushed us into the last quarter of an election year with restrictions on last-quarter spending.”
The town also said rain, lightning and storms delayed the splash pad’s planned Memorial Day opening after earlier construction delays postponed the project by more than a year.
“We wanted to open on May 26, but the rain, lightning and storms prohibited us from this,” the town said.
Despite the delays, Ruffin said the town spent 12 to 14 years saving money for park improvements and did not use grants to construct the splash pad.
Town of Richton Board of Aldermen meeting minutes show officials discussing the splash pad project as early as Nov. 5, 2024. Town meeting minutes show the board approved engineering fees related to the project in November 2024, discussed construction progress in December 2024 and approved additional splash pad-related payments during 2025.
This article first appeared on RHCJC and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
