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The county reopened the William J. Griggs Recreation Center on Thursday afternoon with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The center officially reopened to the public on Friday.

County Commission Chairman Patrick Crews said there are a lot of community partners that made the renovations happen. Crews specifically recognized the City of LaGrange and the Callaway Foundation for their contributions toward the $5.8 million project.

“We could not have done this without our partners, so I thank them for having the vision to be a part of this,” Crews said.

Crews said the project also would not have been possible without the voters of Troup County supporting the SPLOST.

“A lot of people don’t understand the importance of the SPLOST and what the funds from that vote mean for our community. It allows us to have funds that we can use to build projects such as this and other much-needed projects in our community,” Crews said, encouraging people to vote for the SPLOST on Tuesday.

County and city leaders reiterated that this is only Phase I for the Griggs Center renovations and many things are planned.

“I stand in front of you today and commit to you that yes, we have other plans for this center, but this was the cornerstone in which we started. We will be seeing more important things in the future here at the Griggs Center,” Crews said.

The first phase of the renovations included the addition of a full-size gymnasium and the remodeling of the existing smaller gym. A concession area, study rooms, a computer lab a fitness room and additional off-street parking were also added.

One thing notably missing is the pool, which was removed during the renovations and has some community members concerned that it will not be replaced.

The county has promised that the pool will be added in an upcoming phase.

The county is still looking for grants and other opportunities to pay for the pool and additional phases. SPLOST funds could also be used to pay for the pool if necessary, Crews said. The second phase of renovations is expected to cost $3.25 million.

“We are just getting started. We can expect to see a pool in the near future,” said LaGrange City Councilman Leon Childs. “We are very proud of this project and appreciate the collaboration from our partners to make the Griggs Center the jewel of our community that it deserves to be.”