Construction is in full swing at Magnolia’s soon-to-be-open Unity Park, which will celebrate its grand opening with a Fourth of July celebration next month.

Magnolia 4A Economic Development Corporation President Jonny Williams said last week that construction on the park is mostly finished with just a few details left before the holiday celebration.

“The only thing left to do is asphalting the road,” Williams said. “It won’t keep us from using it and then the part that comes in off Nichols Sawmill, we’ll probably be a little behind on that, but it won’t have anything to do with the functioning of the park. It won’t have much of an affect on the Fourth (celebration).”

Plans have been in the works for the 30-plus acre park for more than three years.

The park is funded by the city’s 4A Corporation, which uses sales tax revenue to help spur economic development in the city.

At an April 2009 meeting, the Magnolia city council authorized the 4A to secure funding through sales tax revenue bonds. The park is also funded in part through a grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Among the features completed or nearly completed so far are benches, picnic tables, walking trails, splash pad, skate park and playground equipment.

The park was built by Jordan General Contractors and designed by natural resource consulting firm Burditt. With the exception of the roads, Jordan was responsible for all construction on the park.

Williams said 4A is doing a “cooperative deal between us and the county” regarding the roadways in and around the park.

“By the time we get the road budget in there and include it in the park project it will be approximately a $2.5 million project,” Williams said of the cost of the park. “But in reality, we probably will have somewhere in the neighborhood of $3 to $3.5 million. We didn’t spend that, the value is somewhere between $3 and $3.5 million.”

Williams said 4A’s achieving high value at a low cost for the park was thanks in part to timing and eager contractors.

“We really got some bargains during the time we were bidding because most construction companies were hungry for work,” he said. “We did it at the right time.”

The Magnolia Fourth of July Celebration is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. July 4 at Unity Park and will commence with a fireworks display at 9:15 p.m

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