One of Henry County’s oldest parks has been closed due to safety concerns.

  County officials announced July 19 that Cochran Park in Stockbridge presented “a dangerous and hazardous situation for the public.” In a statement released late that afternoon, Commissioner Bruce Holmes said he had learned of several serious infrastructure issues, such as a crumbling stormwater pipe system that led to several dangerous sinkholes and compromised the parking lot.

  A full inspection of all structures at the park took place before the decision was made to close it.

  Cochran Park has hosted youth baseball leagues for more than 50 years. That includes this year, although Holmes said representatives of the Henry County Parks and Recreation Department have been communicating with league officials and making plans to open up fields at Hidden Valley Park in the Fairview area for teams to move there. A HCPRD official said there is plenty of room for teams at Hidden Valley and staff has already been working to get them there for the fall season.

  Holmes said the plan for Cochran is to repurpose it as a passive park.

  “From what I’m seeing and from its history of sinkholes, this is truly a public safety issue and we need to shut this down today before someone gets hurt,” he said during the July 19 inspection.

  After consulting with county management and several departments, Holmes said he wants to take out the fields and fencing, and move the lights and the scoreboards to be used at other county parks.

   “We need to make it a passive park with greenspace and a gravel walking trail,” he said. “We can renovate the park at minimal cost to the county.”

  County officials will consider the feasibility of creating a dog park similar to the one at Mt. Carmel Park.

  Staff from the Stormwater Department has assessed the situation, and while several repairs have been done over the years, the parking lot continues to crumble, they said. The park was built decades ago in an area that was formerly a water conservation park, and there is constantly such a large amount of water under the property that the fields stay soggy.

  Crews have already erected a barricade to close off the main parking area, leaving open the first part of the parking area and the playground equipment. Temporary signage has also been posted warning people not to park on the closed lot.