Board changes plans to build school on park land

EAST POINT - Visitors to Thomas W. Connally Nature Park might not realize they are just about a mile south of Atlanta. The park&#39;s 27 acres of canopied oaks and wild flowers belie its proximity to the city&#39;s airport. <br> <br> Neighbors wanted to keep it that way. That&#39;s why they fought for two years to prevent the Fulton County Board of Education from building an elementary school at Connally Park. <br> <br> The board announced last week that it will build the school three blocks away. Now, East Point residents and school and city officials are planning a meeting to discuss ways to maintain and improve the parkland. <br> <br> Visitors have damaged tree roots, so some have suggested building an elevated walkway. Plants such as English ivy and privet are slowly choking trees and need to be removed. Garbage needs to be picked up, too. <br> <br> One plan is to create an educational center for students and recruit corporate volunteers, such as Home Depot and Boy Scouts, who have expressed interest in restoring the park to its natural beauty. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s like you&#39;ve gone to a North Georgia forest, yet you&#39;re right here in East Point,&#39;&#39; said Teresa Nelson, a resident who is looking into grants and financial assistance. ``That&#39;s why the park is so important.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> After the city sold Connally Park to the school board for $350,000 three years ago, a group including Nelson sued to stop the school construction. <br> <br> The Ted Turner and Arthur M. Blank Family foundations, as well as private donations, provided financial aid to a national environmental organization, the Conservation Fund, which then paid $1 million to the school board to offset the costs of relocating to another site. <br> <br> The new school, big enough for 800 students, will be built on property the board bought for $2 million. It is expected to open in August 2003. <br> <br> School officials said the lengthy court fight only impeded East Point children while further driving a wedge in the community. <br> <br> ``We never had issues come up quite like this before,&#39;&#39; said Linda Bryant, president of the school board. ``East Point has the largest number of unhoused students in Fulton County. All the schools are greatly overcrowded.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The board&#39;s vice president, Ron Jackson, said the school could have been built at the park. <br> <br> ``But we really didn&#39;t want to do that at that kind of cost,&#39;&#39; Jackson said.