This summer has seen the beginning of several improvements to the area around the splash park in downtown Ironton.

An artistic bike rack, made possible through funding by Third and Center, was installed nearby, while The Shakery, a location of The Shake Shoppe, opened in June.

Also a caboose and cars, owned by Friends of Ironton, have been installed in the area, while last week, a small scale replica of the old Ironton-Russell bridge was placed atop the last remaining support of that bridge, demolished in 2017, which is now on the grounds of the splash park.

The goal is to make the area a destination for those in the region, especially families with children.

In addition to summer activities, the space also has plans for holiday activities in the Christmas season.

This push by the city has already made the space more attractive and we hope it translates to more visitors.

And, speaking of which, the city can expect a few thousand visitors this fall when Wizardfest returns in November. The Harry Potter-themed event is back, following last year’s COVID-19 cancellation.

We commend all groups involved in their work and, with consistent efforts, this could be snowball and bring more people to downtown regularly to see what it has to offer and be a major boost to the city’s economy.