Long-awaited Butler Park opens for Gainesville's Southside residents

Gainesville community members will be able to create more history on the historic grounds of the new Butler Park.

 

Hall County Government officials, community members from the E.E. Butler Steering Committee, members from the Concerned Citizens of Gainesville-Hall County organization and religious leaders spoke to the large crowd on Thursday and cut the ceremonial ribbon. 

 

Gainesville’s Southside community has long been working on community revitalization and economic development. Many people were involved in making Butler Park a reality and the multi-year project required cooperation between government officials and community members, as well as input and memories from E.E. Butler High School alumni.

 

The 13-acre park is located on Athens Street behind the Hall County Health Department. It is also on the grounds of the former E.E. Butler High School, which was active from 1962 to 1969.

 

Concerned Citizens of Gainesville-Hall County President the Rev. Michelle Lowe Mintz spoke following opening comments from Assistant County Administrator Zach Propes, Hall County Board of Commissioners Chairman Richard Higgins and Hall County Parks and Community Services Director Brent Holloway.

 

“In 2008, the community’s concerned citizens organized a community petition,” Mintz said. “We stood at Glory Tabernacle with the Rev. Barbara Borders. We spread the petitions everywhere we could. Over 600 names are on these petitions. These are names that may never be called, but they too are invested in this park.”

 

Mintz also honored the late Mike Little, who was the director of Hall County Parks and Community Services until he passed away in June.

 

“Mike was so enthused about the work that we're doing here,” Mintz said. “He would have meetings with me in the Kroger frozen food section just to continue the work. We are grateful for Mike. I also want to publicly recognize the former Hall County Administrator Randy Knighton. Randy gave us his time, his expertise and he had great patience with us. It was Randy when things got hard who told me personally, ‘Michelle, there is nothing wrong with the Black community wanting a park.’”

 

Butler Park honors Black Gainesville community leaders who spent their careers at the now-closed Fair Street School and E.E. Butler High School. A 120-foot-long mural designed by aspiring Eagle Scout Ashton Dziengue depicts portraits of Dr. Emmett Ethridge Butler, Dr. Ulysses Byas, Mrs. Clara Poole, Mrs. Mary Trawick and Mr. L.C. Baylor.

 

“Those four key features that you see up there were instrumental people during the seven years that E.E. Butler High School was actually active,” E.E. Butler Steering Committee member Andre’ Cheek-Castleberry said. “Soon there will be a small monument right next to the mural so you can learn more about them.” 

 

Between these portraits are historical yearbook photos of E.E. Butler High School students at various extracurricular and athletic activities.

 

Dziengue worked to raise funds for the mural and he also organized several painting days with the community.

 

“I had an initial goal of raising $2,500 and through the community helped me raise over $8,000,” Dziengue said.

 

In addition to the mural, the park boasts brand-new playground equipment and restrooms, a basketball court, a walking trail, a multi-use field and a pavilion with picnic tables and grills. 

 

Cheek-Castleberry said even the smallest design details were taken into consideration.

 

“We said that we wanted a park for those that were ages two to five and then from five to 12,” she said. “We've got two separate areas for the kids. We thought about kids who were disabled. We wanted them to be able to come. If they were blind and they wanted to play music, all of that was considered when we put those things in the park.”

 

The basketball court and the picnic tables are burgundy-colored, which nods to E.E. Butler High School’s burgundy and gray colors. There is also burgundy workout equipment in front of the basketball court.

 

Hall County District 4 Commissioner Jeff Stowe gave closing remarks before the other speakers reassembled to cut the ceremonial ribbon. He got involved with the Butler Park project 10 years ago and became emotional as he reflected on how the park started. Where the multi-purpose field stands used to be a giant hole, but Stowe worked with Brian Rochester of the civil engineering firm Rochester & Associates, Inc. to make the space suitable for a field.

 

“We've had a lot of delays,” Stowe said. “But over those delays, we got a blessing of the hospital doing work and bringing in the dirt that turned a giant hole into this magnificent multi-purpose field.”