Friends of Rotary Park

This is a service provided to the users of Rotary Park in Clarksville, Montgomery County, Tennessee. It is hosted by Friends of Rotary Park, a newly formed volunteer group that is dilligently working to improve the trail network at the park. This site provides information about current, past, and future trail development.

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Rotary Park is a county-owned natural park in Clarksville, Montgomery County, Tennessee. It consists of two adjoining tracts of land that make up about 95 acres of mostly undeveloped, wooded land. There is one park entrance/exit that is paved and runs to the back of the park. There are three pavilions along the roadway with the largest being at the road's end. Rotary Park has an extensive trail network and is open to hikers and bikers. The new push for extensive trail work is necessary because most trails were improperly built by ATVs and motorcycles. Motorized vehicles are now banned from the park. Furthermore, the trails are showing signs of serious erosion. Most recently, a large amount of sustainable trail located outside of the park's boundary has been taken by development. The Friends of Rotary Park is dedicated to restoring and improving the park. Those interested in joining Friends of Rotary Park can do so by contacting Chris Clark at 931-801-3898. Dues are $25.00 for a family membership.

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Great News

Friends:

Below is a letter I recently received from Stacy Goodwin at Parks and Recreation detailing the progress to date at Rotary Park. Lots of progress has been made at the park and it appears that it will be re-opened by summers end. When you read the letter, you will see that she has requested a walk-through with our organization and additional meetings to continue creating a cohesive, master plan to preserve the future of Rotary Park. I will propose the following dates and times for a walk-through. Please let me know what works best for everyone.

Tuesday, July 11 at 5:00 or 5:30 p.m.
Thursday, July 13 at 5:00 or 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 15 at 8:00 a.m. (If okay with Stacy, I would like to have our group do some trail work to re-slope Re-route #4 where the ATVs damaged it and to tie up some lose ends there).
Sunday, July 16 at 1:00 p.m. (I know it is hot but I don't believe in setting group activities during church hours).

If any of these dates and times will work, please let me know.

Also, as many of you know, Stacy has been a huge help to our group. We are very fortunate that she likes our agenda and is willing to include us in the planning and future development of Rotary Park. As always, please remind her of how much we appreciate her.

Please call or e-mail me if you have any additional questions.

Chris

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Hello:

(Please pass this message onto you e-mail list)

I hope everyone had a great holiday. I wanted to bring everyone up to date on the progress of Rotary Park. Just about all of the construction is completed by the contractors except for the new ADA restroom. The playground is still a mess; I have to wait until after July 10th to purchase gravel that will be placed under the mulch to help with the drainage problem. I'm also waiting to see if the $10k for construction of an ADA accessible trail has been approved. I currently have 2 boy scouts interested to constructing sections of the ADA trail (along the creek) as their Eagle Scout project.

Now as for the rest of the trails, right now is looks like a big mess. There are new trails made by the skidder and small dozer. If possible I would like to have a meeting at the park some evening. We can walk the trails and discuss some of things that need to be done. I would like to schedule something soon so if the Friends of Rotary Park Pres. could will throw out a couple of dates that would be great. . I'm hoping for July 21rst opening date and as you know most people go to Rotary for the trails. If we need to close off sections of the trail, I'd like to do it before it gets heavy traffic. I thought about making signs that say: Trail Temporality closed. If I could work with you all to make a needs assessment then I can make a work plan, time line, budget, and eventually a yearlong preventative maintenance schedule. A lot of people are anticipating the opening of Rotary Park, I get calls everyday! I would like to keep the parks in the lime light and since it has been a topic on current campaigns. I went out on a limb and wrote a letter to editor regarding parks.

I truly am advocate for parks, even if I was not employed by parks & recreation I would be a volunteer as you all are. I have the same passion, and even more now that I have a child and search for a safe place to take her to play. Unfortunately the nearest park to our house is 10 miles away. That being said here is the letter I wrote:

I am writing to elaborate on the “quality of life issues” mentioned by some of the candidates running for the upcoming election. Our parks (city, state and county) deserve much more attention not only during campaigns but once officials take office. The National Recreation and Parks Association website www.nrpa.org states the top 10 reasons parks are important.

1. Parks provide millions of Americans with the opportunity to be active. Having close to home access to places where one can recreate is one of the most important factors linking whether people will become active and stay that way.
2. Parks have true economic benefits. Proximity to a developed state, regional or community park improves property value. Parks and recreation areas are economic engines that improve the quality of life and make communities livable and desirable for businesses and homeowners.
3. Parks provide vital green space in a fast-developing American landscape, and provide vegetative buffers to construction and development, thus reducing the effects of sprawl. Parks also provide groundwater recharge areas, floodplain protection, natural sound barriers, storm water protection from wetlands, reductions in heat island effects and carbon uptake from abundant trees and vegetation.
4. Parks preserve critical wildlife habitat.
5. Parks and recreation facilitate social interactions that are critical to maintaining community cohesion and pride.
6. Leisure activities in parks improve moods, reduce stress and enhance the sense of wellness.
7. Recreational programs provide organized, structured, enjoyable activities for all ages.
8. Community recreation services provide a refuge of safety for at-risk youth.
9. Therapeutic recreation is an outlet that individuals with disabilities have to be physically active, socially engaged and cognitively stimulated.
10. Public Parks embody the American tradition of preserving public lands for the benefit and use of all. Americans love their parks, historical sites, national monuments, recreation areas and open spaces. The American public has shown time after time that they are willing to care for their parks, protect them and pay for them.

Stacy Goodwin
Montgomery County Parks & Recreation
Director
1030 B Cumberland Heights Road
Clarksville, TN 37040
(931) 648-5732

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