FROM STAFF REPORTS

The Mooresville Town Commission on Monday awarded a $7.9 million contract to J.D. Goodrum Co. of Cornelius for the construction of phase II of Liberty Park.

Commissioners earmarked about $4 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds for the project.

The park expansion, which will take 513 days to complete with an anticipated spring 2023 opening, features a covered basketball court/multipurpose area, a hillside playground and other attractions. An illuminated 1,400-foot pedestrian pathway will include emergency call boxes.

“This project is going to be the jewel of downtown Mooresville,” Commissioner Thurman Houston said. “This place is beautiful. It blows my mind when I look at it. It’s awesome.”

Town officials were excited that the entire project would be completed in one phase with all of the alternate projects included.

“This is not a small investment — at a little over $7.9 million — in our downtown,” Commissioner Gary West said.

“This is a big day,” Mayor Miles Atkins said after the unanimous vote. “It’s a big deal.”