Decatur, GA — The little red house at 1010 N. Parkwood Road in Decatur is slated to become greenspace and expand Hidden Cove Park. The greenspace is also a nod to the longtime residents of that home, Andy and Louise Plankenhorn.
The Decatur City Commission, at its April 3 meeting, approved the purchase of the property for $400,000.
The Plankenhorns built their home on Parkwood Road about 65 years ago. They raised three daughters there, and both of them worked in education. Andy and Louise were avid gardeners and were constantly working in their yard.
Louise passed away about eight years ago, and Andy passed away last year at 94.
“When he was 92, 93, he was still out there mowing the grass,” said Lynn Hood, one of the Plankenhorns’ daughters. “He loved to work out in the yard. They collected native plants, so there are lots of ferns. There are lots of wild flowers.”
Hood, along with her two sister, currently owns the property.
“What a wonderful thing to be able to go over there and have a picnic in the place where we grew up and see other people enjoying it and having their children there running around would be an incredible experience,” Hood said. “Because it’s a dead end, and it butts up to another park, this really is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to increase that greenspace.”
The property is one lot that’s about half an acre. It’s located next to the city’s Hidden Cove Park.
“There is a single family home on the property, otherwise it’s grass and trees,” City Manager Andrea Arnold said. “I do believe that it makes sense for the city to acquire this property, primarily because of the connection with an existing greenspace.”
The purchase is consistent with a few of the city’s master plans, including the 2020 strategic plan, the stormwater master plan and the parks and recreation master plan, which the city commission recently adopted. The city has funds available in the general fund to cover the…
Read the full article here
