Johnston County officially cut the ribbon Friday on its first county-owned regional park, swinging open the gates at 444 Matthews Road in the Cleveland community with a 10 a.m. ceremony that felt a bit like a neighborhood block party with better parking. Families and neighbors flowed onto the new courts and circled an ADA-accessible fishing pond as officials hailed what county leaders framed as a long-awaited community resource. County staff passed out slushies and sports gear so visitors could jump straight into pickleball and basketball during the dedication. The park is designed to serve residents across western Johnston County as the area continues to grow.
Ribbon-Cutting And Opening
The county staged the ribbon-cutting at 10 a.m. Friday and billed it as free and open to the public, according to a county press release. Patrick Harris, chairman of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners, and Adrian O'Neal, director of Parks and Open Space, headlined the program. O'Neal called the park's debut "a major step forward" for the Cleveland community. The county said the ceremony featured demonstrations along with chances for residents to test the new courts and the fishing dock, with staff setting up try-it stations around the park, according to Johnston County Government.
Phase One Amenities And Funding
Phase One delivers four pickleball courts, two basketball courts, an ADA-accessible fishing pond with an accessible dock, a picnic shelter and parking. The county lists the construction price tag for this initial stage at about $4.35 million, with roughly $3.2 million covered by grants and the remainder coming from county and open-space funds. Funding sources identified for the project include the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund (PARTF) and the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), according to Johnston County Parks and Open Space.
How The Site Was Secured
Johnston County purchased the roughly 70-acre property in 2020 from the Cleveland Community Parks and Recreation Association, a neighbor-led nonprofit that bought the land to preserve park space as residential development accelerated nearby. Denton Lee, who helped spearhead the community push, said residents acted to "set aside land for recreation before the opportunity was lost," according to a county statement. County officials say that acquisition was central to creating a regional park meant to serve both the Cleveland area and the wider county, according to Johnston County Government.
Design, Construction And Timeline
The county awarded a design-build contract to McAdams and Balfour Beatty, and Balfour Beatty's Carolinas unit has highlighted the regional park among its recent public-works projects. Construction crews mobilized on November 3, and county project pages showed Phase One targeted for completion by summer or fall 2026. Officials said the design-build setup combined engineering and construction to move the project along more quickly while keeping an eye on costs, according to Balfour Beatty.
What’s Next
Future phases are planned to add multi-use athletic fields, walking trails and accessible sidewalks, a K–12 playground, a splash pad and features such as a dog park, disc golf course, skate park and an outdoor amphitheater as funding becomes available. Local coverage has outlined the county's long-range vision and phased buildout that will follow this first wave of amenities. The county's official Facebook post shared photos from opening day and noted that the park will operate seven days a week from dawn until dusk, with the post serving as some of the earliest visual documentation of the site, according to JoCo Report.
