“Rain, rain, go away. Come back another day,” is quickly becoming the mantra of members of the U.S. Air Force’s Innovative Readiness Team (IRT) working on the Florala State Park Lake Jackson Project.

In April, more than 10 inches of rain fell on the construction site of the $2 million amphitheater and community center and was not thought to have impacted the project’s finish timeline. However, as the weeks passed and rainfall totals grew, project officials say they are now unsure how far past the original July 31 completion date it will take.

“It really just depends on the weather, and we don’t know how much of a delay it will be because of the weather,” said Bonnie Brown, Florala Utilities’ public relations and economic development specialist. “Right now, there are state licensed subcontractors putting the roof on and installing the air conditioning. IRT members are busy working on other aspects of the project.

“As soon as the roof is on, IRT members, who are from all over the United States and specialists in the their field, can start hanging drywall and doing other interior work,” she said.

No matter what the finish date is, visitors and residents are eagerly awaiting the opening of the new 11,500 square-foot park facilities.

“At present count, there’s 56 weddings scheduled for the new building and amphitheater,” Brown said. “Can you believe it? That’s 56 families who want to have their event in Florala.”