AUGUSTA, Ga. – The city of Augusta is contemplating a significant change involving several of its parks, and some officials believe it’s a long-overdue decision.

“The evidence speaks for itself. These parks are not seeing the kind of use we anticipated. In my view, the choices are to either close them or put them up for sale,” stated Commissioner Catherine Smith Rice.

In a recent report, a city-appointed parks consultant unveiled findings based on three months of data regarding park usage across Augusta.

The findings indicate that over 20 parks are significantly underused, prompting the suggestion that the city should explore alternative uses for these spaces. One proposed solution involves leasing the parks to local neighborhood associations.

Consultant Abie Ladson from ISM remarked, “One option is to sell the parks. While the operating costs aren’t immediately clear, that’s certainly something worth investigating further.”

With the city facing a large budget shortfall, cutting costs is a priority, but closing parks can be unpopular.

“We’re going to deal with that but we also have to deal with the fact of what makes sense, what’s the best use of dollars, what’s the best use of making sure that it’s maintained,” said Commissioner Don Clark.

A commission committee did approve a path forward, have the consultants come back with a report on what will the savings would be if the underused parks are closed.

“For us to take a deep dive, we’ll probably close some, but what will close? I don’t know,” said Commissioner Francine Scott.

The data is in place on which parks are underused, but commissioners want more info on whether closing one or more is worth it.