MAPP Celebrates Bennett Park Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Bennett Park has long been a part of daily life in Forsyth County, where weekends fill up with games, practices, and time spent together outdoors. Since opening in 1978, it has been a place the community returns to time and time again, and this April, county leaders, residents, and youth athletes gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating its reopening after a large-scale, $25.8 million renovation.

Through a full redevelopment spanning 35 acres, MAPP's Atlanta team proudly led the park's transformation alongside design partners at Hussey Gay Bell. The space now includes two multi-purpose artificial turf fields, three baseball and softball fields, two full-court outdoor basketball courts, batting cages, a new community building, picnic pavilions, a playground, and paved and nature trails throughout. Expanded parking and improved connectivity between parking areas and the sports fields were also key priorities, designed to ease congestion during tournaments and busy weekend leagues. The project was funded through a combination of SPLOST proceeds, capital outlay funds, impact fees, and a $2.2 million state grant, and followed a groundbreaking in May 2024.

"Bennett Park has been transformed. Even though everything looks new, the purpose of the park hasn't changed," said Forsyth County Parks & Recreation Director Kirk Franz at the ceremony. "This is still where kids will play on a field for the first time, where parents will cheer from the sidelines, where memories will be made." District 4 Commissioner Mendy Moore echoed that sentiment, noting the park has served generations of Forsyth County families since it first opened and that the growth of northeast Forsyth County made the renovation especially timely.

It was a meaningful day marking the reopening and seeing the community back in the space. The reimagined Bennett Park was designed to serve future generations while holding onto everything that has made it a staple in the Forsyth County community for nearly five decades.

Read more about the reopening from Forsyth County.