Macon-Bibb County will hold a groundbreaking ceremony at Frank Johnson Community Center (2227 Mercer University Drive) on Thursday, March 17, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. to celebrate the start of construction of its expansion and improvement project. This $939,000 project is being funded by the voter-approved Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, and once begun, is expected to take 270 construction days. The architects for the project was WM2A Architects, and Cook General Contracting is managing the construction services.
 
“It’s a very exciting time for recreation in Macon-Bibb. People spoke loud and clear when they voted for the SPLOST and asked for significant improvements to our recreation facilities, and we are right in the middle of making that happen,” says Parks and Recreation Director Reggie Moore. “From Frank Johnson Community Center to Rosa Jackson to East Macon to Daisy Park to John Drew Smith Tennis Center to Bowden Golf Course…people can already see the improvements or watch as they’re being made. In the next few months, we’ll see work begin at Central City Park and the new SubSouth Recreation Center.”
 
“With the SPLOST, we are able to take care of decades of repairs and maintenance that were ignored, and make major upgrades to the facilities, at recreation centers across the entire county,” says Macon-Bibb Mayor Robert Reichert. “Our children and our neighborhoods need places to come together, to play sports, and to build a sense of community, and they can find it in our parks and our facilities. They deserve great spaces, and we are working to make that happen.”
 
This phase of the project project includes a new addition to the building so it will have a more inviting and safe entrance for people using the facility, a computer lab, larger meeting room, larger game room, larger multi-purpose room, new weight room, significantly improved bathrooms, new flooring and more. Phase II of the project includes a new gymnasium and playground.
 
The Master Plan for the Frank Johnson Community Center was developed with the assistance of WM2A Architects after three public meetings this past summer with people from the neighborhood and who use the Center. Their input was instrumental in determining how the SPLOST funds would be used to improve and upgrade the building to meet their needs.