Natchez parks could get rock walls, zip line

Published 11:11 pm Sunday, June 25, 2017

 

NATCHEZ — The Natchez bluff or Duncan Park could become future destinations for children seeking adventures on a rock wall or zip line.

Natchez YMCA Director Alice Agner applied Friday for the Disney Play Spaces grant to help pay for some equipment. Agner received permission earlier last week to apply for the grant through the Natchez-Adams County Recreation Commission.

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The minimum grant awarded is $10,000 and would require a 50-percent match. If the grant is awarded, the match would be funded through the recreation commission’s capital improvement projects fund.

Thirty grants are available and parties would be notified if they received the grant by July 24.

Agner said she would request funds for a couple of rock walls, climbing equipment and appropriate fall surfaces. One wall, for children ages 3 to 5, would be 6-foot tall. For children ages 5 to 12 an 8-foot wall would also be at the location.

Another item of interest is a small zip line area, Agner said. The zip line would be modeled after the zip line at the Reservoir YMCA in the Jackson area, Agner said.

The Reservoir zip line is seated, approximately 25 yards long and approximately 20 feet high. The zip line is staffed by two people to ensure safety.

Agner said she would need to have approval from the Natchez Board of Aldermen for use of the bluff, but she said the park equipment, if awarded, could be placed at Duncan Park if the bluff were not available.