Suwanee Approves Plans For Town Center West Park

SUWANEE, GA — A new, $12 million park is on its way in Suwanee.

City council on Wednesday unanimously approved the master plan for Town Center West, which will be located on a 25-acre site behind the Suwanee library and PlayTown Suwanee on Suwanee Dam Road.

The property was purchased by the city in 2002 as part of its comprehensive park and open space initiative.

"The success of Town Center Park has exceeded all expectations," said Suwanee Mayor Jimmy Burnette, in a news release. "The park draws over 200,000 visitors annually to events, as well as regularly serving our 18,000 citizens. The new Town Center Park West will help ease the demand on the existing park and surrounding community."

The park will feature a mixture of environments, including:

• A roughly 900-foot, elevated bridge for pedestrian and bicycle use, spanning the entire park and crossing an approximately one-acre water feature
• An open terrace plaza and lawn area at the peak of the park’s elevation that will include several small-scale micro-business sites serving park patrons
• An extension of the existing Playtown Suwanee geared toward older children, expanding the age range of Playtown Suwanee
• Sandpit volleyball courts
• A public art piece.

A roughly 15-acre wooded area along the existing Brushy Creek Greenway will remain undisturbed.

City officials say the new park's design will be influenced by Town Center Park, but will not be a replica. Plans call for a pedestrian connection, using City Hall Park to link the two.

In perhaps the plan's biggest change, Main Street will be realigned to shift around the park and exit onto Suwanee Dam Road at an existing traffic signal.

Suwanee officials say this will improve safety and traffic flow by allowing a median break currently on Suwanee Dam Road to be closed.

The anticipated cost of Town Center Park West is roughly $12 million. No timetable for its construction has been established.

Image courtesy City of Suwanee