Hamlet gives red caboose a makeover

HAMLET — The red caboose at Hamlet City Lake has had its exterior refurbished and repainted in recent weeks, adding a bright splash of color to the area that’s seen a slew of improvements over the last year.

These improvements to the caboose were the result of $15,000 grant from the Cole Foundation and Community Foundation of Richmond County in December which funded the cost of hydroblasting and sandblasting the exterior, repainting it, and repair the rot along the bottom.

Former Hamlet City Manager Jonathan Blanton, who spearheaded the recent improvements to the lake area, said that without those grants, the caboose project may not have happened at all. On Tuesday, Mayor Pro Tem Jesse McQueen credited Blanton with being the driving force behind the project and seeking funding to make sure it came to fruition.

“Jonathan Blanton did an outstanding job getting that project off the ground and, man, I’d like to see us continue in that way,” McQueen said, referring to the difficulty in finding funds for these kinds of things going forward. “It’s going to be difficult with what Richmond County Board of Commissioners did to us, cutting us the way they did with sales tax revenue. Hopefully we’re going to find a way past that and move forward with (the project).”

The lettering on the caboose, which read “The Little Town That Does,” and the official seal have not yet been added back to the street-side of the caboose. The Master Plan for the lake includes plans to use the inside of the caboose for a reading space and a butterfly garden. This, along with other improvements to the lake, such as extending the pier all the way across, have been put on hold due to lack of funds, according to Mayor Bill Bayless.

“With our financial situation we’re not really trying to plan anything,” Bayless said.