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By Jay King
HOMETOWN NEWS
For something that has often engendered controversy and ill-will among taxpayers, the local hospitality and accommodations taxes aimed at fostering tourism and increased recreational opportunities have been used to good effect, and Duncan’s new Stoneledge Park is a case in point.
According to Joe Newton, director of governmental services for the Appalachian Council of Governments, the town of Duncan’s use of local accommodations and hospitality tax revenue to support a new park that will include a water park is in keeping with both the letter and the spirit of the state law that established those taxes.
“They’ve done an excellent job of envisioning, planning and executing a difficult project,” Newton said in an interview Monday. ‘They are to be commended.”
Newton said that when the state General Assembly passed the local hospitality and accommodations taxes, the goal was for local governments to use that revenue on projects that would foster increased tourism and more recreational opportunities for both visitors and local residents.
“They’ve done that to a tee and produced an amazing project that should benefit the whole area,” Newton said. “It’s projects like this that show governments can do good things for their citizens.”
Duncan Town Administrator Fran Bowen and Fire Chief Barry Frost have been instrumental in planning the park and seeing it come to fruition. Bowen said last week during a tour of the park that the project was designed to give area residents, particularly young people and children, a place where they could come and enjoy themselves in a safe environment.
“This is why we got involved with this in the first place – to do something for the kids,” Bowen said.
The playground portion of Stoneledge Park has been completed and open since February of last year, and the water park, Shipwreck Cove, is on schedule to open May 16. Bowen said she expects the water park to open for regular hours around June 5 or 6, and the park will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.
The whole project began to take shape just over two years ago when town leaders decided to develop a project that would benefit not only the citizens of the town but residents from across the county and region. The price tag for the park will be about $3 million with roughly $500,000 being spent on the playground area.
Bowen said that the town’s accommodations and hospitality tax revenues, roughly about $240,000 a year, has enabled the town to move forward with the project on a lease-purchase basis instead of incurring capital debt. Once the water park is open, revenue from admissions ( between $7 - $9 per person depending on height) should cover the park’s annual operating expenses.
The park is located at the corner of S. Spencer and Spring streets on a 20-acre parcel of town property. Bowen said the water park will employ between 30 and 35 people throughout its months of operation during the summer.
Bowen said that the town is in the process of staffing the water park and has posted notices with USC Upstate, the Middle Tyger YMCA, Spartanburg Community College, and with both Byrnes and Greer high schools. She added that the goal is to have all employees qualified as certified life guards to ensure that patrons enjoying the park are kept safe at all times.
Anyone interested in a job at the water park should contact Duncan Town Hall at 439-2664. Information on the park will also be available in a couple of weeks through the park’s website, “http://www.shipwreckcovesc.com” www.shipwreckcovesc.com.
Bowen said that the water park will have adequate lighting for evening operations and that it will be available for rent for parties and corporate functions. She said town leaders were also discussing opening the park during evening hours for things like a teen night, a family night or an adults-only night.
jking@hometown-news.com
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