By ADAM DODSON | Times-Journal

Mayor Darrio Melton has announced that the Selma Riverfront will be receiving an economic and recreational upgrade for 2018.

Known as the “splash pad,” the project will add recreational amenities that people of all ages can enjoy. For example, Melton envisions fishing tournaments being hosted in the area in the future.

The project is made possible thanks to a $75,000 grant from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs’ Land and Water Conservation Fund.

The city of Selma matched the $75,000 for a total of $150,000. The application process for the grant began in the middle of 2017.

This announcement comes after a previous announcement that Downtown Selma will be receiving a grant to bolster free Wi-Fi for the residents and business owners.

These initiatives, Melton says, are necessary for the preservation of the riverfront area.

“It is important for us to appreciate Selma for being a city with a riverfront,” said Melton. “Not many other cities have this. The riverfront and this project opens us up economically and recreationally.”

In addition to the splash pad and Wi-Fi overhaul, Selma has four other construction projects related to the downtown riverfront planned for 2018.

These projects include two construction plans to build a boardwalk along the river, put in restrooms and also repairing one of the slopes in the area where the splash pad is predicted to go.

Construction companies can begin placing bids for the splash pad the week of Monday, Jan. 22.