RIDGELAND, Miss. (October 20, 2018) — This morning, Northpark unveiled the all new Family Lounge and Discovery Park kicking off a full day of grand opening events and activities for local children and families. The Family Lounge and Discovery Park
openings mark the first of upcoming grand opening events for the Ridgeland shopping destination’s current multimillion-dollar redevelopment. The events began with the unveiling of the Children’s Handprint Tile wall, created in May by over 100 local children, including young patients at Batson Children’s Hospital.
Ridgeland business Kelty Tile and Marble, featuring artist Delia Kelty, donated all of the tiles for the event. The tiles were sold to parents of the participants, and proceeds were donated to Batson Children’s Hospital through a check presentation of $3600 this morning. The Handprint tile wall will be featured in the Family Lounge for decades to come.
Other events throughout the day include a balloon drop, character photos, pumpkin decorating, a petting zoo, storytime, magicians, and entertainment. The state-of-the-art Family Lounge features private nursing areas, baby changing-stations, a large child-friendly restroom, and a variety of amenities to
entertain the kids while shoppers relax and recharge. Discovery Park is a nature-inspired interactive children’s zone based on local butterfly species and flora, including the magnolia. It is an inviting, open imaginative garden with areas for kids to run, learn, and explore. Discovery Park, combined with the Family Lounge, will create a fresh, energetic destination for families to spend time together. Renovations nearing completion to the 958,000-square-foot center include new public entrances and corridors, common area updates, amenities, and gathering spaces including a transformation of the current food court to a more open and spacious café-style Eatery. The Eatery will offer a fresh dining venue for visitors to comfortably gather and unwind while shopping. “We are thrilled to offer these fun and family-friendly gathering places to our community,” said Christy Pender, Northpark’s Marketing and Business Development Manager.
“Discovery Park and the new Family Lounge shows Northpark’s dedication to being a family-centric community beacon and will allow for family shopping with greater ease.” Fresh interior and exterior landscaping and a total resurfacing of the parking lot will complete Phase 1 next month. Northpark, which has remained open during the renovation, will host a grand reopening celebration of The New Northpark November 15-18, in time for the official kick-off of the holiday shopping season.