Local

Hole outside city park gets covered after Action News Jax story

A 2-foot-deep hole in the ground just outside Brooklyn Park got covered up after an Action News Jax story Tuesday.

Neighbors were worried kids would fall in.

The city of Jacksonville said a neighbor had first complained about the hole two years ago.

Neighbors had gotten so sick of waiting that they’d covered the hole themselves with boards that had since become flimsy.

“It’s about the children. You know, ultimately, letting them know that they matter and that things that concern them, it concerns us. And they should be able to play in a safe environment,” said grandmother Ayesha Covington.

On Tuesday, city spokesperson Tia Ford sent Action News Jax an email saying the hole used to house an AT&T fiber optics box and the city “alerted AT&T of this for resolution” two years ago.

The next day, Ford sent another email saying, “We have since learned that the fiber optic box belongs to Verizon.”

Ford has not responded to Action News Jax’s three emails asking if the city followed up at any point to see if the problem was fixed after reporting it to the wrong company two years ago.

“I couldn’t believe that it actually got done. And thank you, really, for coming out, for taking that issue so seriously, and for getting that done for us,” said Covington.

Verizon spokesperson Kate Jay said that Wednesday was the first time the city of Jacksonville had reached out to the company about the hole.