Britta Piccot walks with her son Ethan, 11, and dog, Clover, around the retention pond at Palmetto Park on Thursday. Sumter Assistant City Manager of Public Services Al Harris said Palmetto Park also serves as a retention pond to prevent heavy flooding in the residential areas surrounding it. “It’s doing exactly what its supposed to do,” he said. Though the water can sometimes rise above the bridges in the park, the features were built to handle it, Harris said. He said water that collects at Palmetto Park slowly flows through the storm water system underneath Alice Drive and McKay Road into Second Mill Pond. The park also held large amounts of water during the 1,000-year flood in October.