A 1,300 sq. ft. treehouse, just one of the amenities at Camp Southern Ground in Fayette County, was presented on July 25. The treehouse will be featured in September on “Treehouse Masters” on the Animal Planet Channel.
A different kind of treehouse has come out of the ground, actually out of the trees, on the campus of the nonprofit Camp Southern Ground in central Fayette County.
A nonprofit organization founded by country artist Zac Brown, the 400-acre Camp Southern Ground for children with neurobehavioral disorders and military families with post-deployment issues, has been in the works for some time.
As construction continues, one of the amenities was previewed on July 25. It was the 1,300 sq. ft. treehouse which will be featured on “Treehouse Masters” in September on the Animal Planet Channel.
The large treehouse was four years in the making, said Camp Southern Ground Construction Director Ben Ferguson. The large treehouse is accessed by a winding, Americans With Disabilities Act-approved ramp and rail structure and is outfitted with an observation deck.
A facility in its own right, the treehouse will be used for a variety of programming purposes and workshops. It includes a large conference table that lifts into the ceiling, Ferguson said.
Shelly Brown, wife of the singer and Fayette County native, said the development of the camp is “going really well.”
“It was on our first date 10 years ago that Zac said he was going to build (the camp). To see it coming to fruition is unbelievable,” Shelly said with a smile.
When completed, Camp Southern Ground will be a facility for children with neurobehavioral disorders, specifically Attention Deficient Disorder (ADD), autism, Asperger’s and dyslexia. Additionally, it will act as a respite center for military families suffering from post-deployment issues like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), according to Camp Southern Ground.
Camp Southern Ground will be the site of five mini-camps as the summer weather cools. Among the numerous amenities in place is a large shade pavilion with meeting rooms upstairs, a 12-acre organic garden, a high-ropes athletic structure and a large dining hall currently under construction and expected to open in late summer.
Essentially out of sight, Camp Southern Ground on Ebenezer Church Road in central Fayette County continues to emerge and is expected to open in summer 2018.
