A Savannah College of Art and Design graduate student revealed her vision of what the Research Forest Tract may hold for community purposes — much to the Effingham Industrial Development Authority’s liking.

Master’s candidate Erin Rahn used her concept of what a portion of the land at Research Forest Tract set aside for recreational purposes could become for her thesis, and her presentation to the IDA board was warmly received.

“I think you’ve done an incredible job,” IDA member Jimmy Wells told Rahn of her work. “So when do we start?”

In creating in models and on display boards what could transpire at Research Forest, Rahn focused on 30 acres closest to McCall Road of the 80 acres along the southernmost stretch of the IDA’s property. She surveyed local high school students about what they would like to see in a community center-style environment.

“We don’t have any of the proms at the high schools,” she said. “We have them all in Savannah.”

Rahn said her goal was to create something that was adaptable to the community’s needs but that also would be consistent. She mapped out and drew out a ballroom, a leisure park, family pavilions, a pond, a playground, a concession stand, a theater and viewing lawn, tennis courts and three football/soccer fields for the 30 acres. She developed a matrix of needs from survey, and the results pointed to a theater, ballroom, concession stands and active and passive parks.

The theater and ballroom would be concrete and exposed timber, using natural light for the interior. A viewing lawn adjacent to an exterior wall of the theater could be used for showing movies outdoors.

“That’s another activity you could do without having to go to Savannah,” she said.

The fields also could be used for recreation and intramural games, something the high school students she queried said they wanted.

“We all agree we need a gathering place,” said IDA board member Rose Harvey. “Our young people, what do they do? This gives us a goal to work toward.”

In her mockup, Rahn has 8,000 square feet of ballroom space and a one-mile track runs through the area.

“The track at Baker Park is one mile and is very popular,” she said.

The fields also could be used for soccer tournaments, and the county, Rahn pointed out, doesn’t have anything big enough to house an event such as the Ogeechee Seafood Festival in Richmond Hill.

“You could hold picnics and (farmers’) markets, instead of the ones scattered around the county, small fairs, movies, concerts and pageants, all those things that tend to happen in a school auditorium,” she said. “I was trying to create spaces the community would need but would not become unusable. I think this design would blend in well with Effingham County. I wanted to create things that weren’t expensive to build. The construction of it is really simple.”

IDA CEO John Henry served as Rahn’s thesis advisor and sat in on her thesis defense.

“I’m really impressed with the work she has done,” he said.