Bonnet Springs Park announces grand opening date in October

Sara-Megan Walsh, The Ledger
·2 min read
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LAKELAND —  Lakeland residents will be able to enjoy Bonnet Springs Park for the first time this fall.

Bonnet Springs Park will hold an official grand opening on Oct. 22 after roughly two and a half years of construction. The 168-acre, privately funded public park sits on the site of the former Lakeland rail yard along George Jenkins Boulevard and Kathleen Road.

"We are so proud to debut Bonnet Springs Park to Lakeland and Central Florida this October," Josh Henderson, the parks' CEO, said in a statement. "We are very thankful for our community of generous donors that has made this project possible. It’s been a long time coming, and our grand opening will show the wait was worth it."

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This detailed map of Bonnet Springs Park lays out where visitors will be able to find more than 23 features that are currently under construction.
This detailed map of Bonnet Springs Park lays out where visitors will be able to find more than 23 features that are currently under construction.

The park is the vision of Lakeland Realtor David Bunch and Bill Tinsley, the city's former parks director. They worked as organizers alongside the Barnett family of Publix Super Markets, including the late Carol Jenkins Barnett, to kick start the park. Barney Barnett chairs the park's board of directors with his sons Wesley and Nick as board members.

Plans were announced in early 2018. The park will become the new home of Explorations V Children's Museum, which will be renamed Florida Children's Museum. Features will include a heritage garden, tree canopy walk, children's treehouse and playground and a large open field that provides space for public outdoor events.

The site required a massive environmental remediation before construction could begin in March 2020. The COVID pandemic caused some building delays due in part to the global supply shortage of materials.

Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545. Follow on Twitter @SaraWalshFl. 

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: A long time coming, Bonnet Springs Park announces opening