Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin gestures to the crowd before throwing out the first Frisbee to officially open Palatine Park.
FAIRMONT, W.Va. — It wasn’t the traditional ribbon cutting Wednesday at Palatine Park.
Instead of lining up to cut a ribbon, Marion County and state officials including Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin lined up on the stage of the amphitheater and aimed. The group threw out bright green Frisbees and rubber football to the crowd in celebration of the grand opening of Palatine Park and the new splash park.
“Having a park like this, its creates a good quality of life,” Tomblin said.
During the ceremony, kids were enjoying the newly built splash park. Tomblin said looking at those kids play in the park is what building a park is all about.
“It’s a place for our children to come and play because they’re our future,” he said.
The renovations of Palatine Park began on March 17 with Thrasher Engineering taking on the construction of the project. Crews worked seven days a week to meet deadlines and to have the park ready for the Three Rivers Festival, which was on May 22.
Marion County Commission President Butch Tennant said the cost of the renovations was around $1 million. He said the money used for the project came from the county’s coal severance tax fund along with sin tax and Hotel/Motel tax funds.
