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The Elizabethton Parks & Recreation Department deserves a pat on the back and a big “thank you” from the community for the July 4th celebration they plan each year for the community. There’s always plenty of fun events for the community to enjoy and participate in, including the Patriotic Pedal Contest with youngsters decorating their tricycles, wagons, strollers, scooters, etc. This contest was followed by a Patriotic Pup Pageant.

In addition, there were other contests, including a Little Miss Firecracker Pageant, dancing, food trucks, and a party band, which entertained the crowd with oldies from the Eighties. However, the highlight of the evening was the big fireworks show, which was among the best in the area.

The Parks & Rec Department, under the direction of David Nanney and his staff, do a great job week in and week out with the various activities they plan for the public, including the Saturday evening concerts in the Covered Bridge Park. In between the weekend activities, on weekdays, employees are busy mowing and keeping our parks clean.

We often overlook the fact that parks improve the tax base and increase property values of our city. It is proven that private property values increase the value of privately owned land the closer such lands are to parks. This increase in private property value due to the proximity to parks increases property tax revenues and improves local economies.

Every member of the Parks and Rec Department is multifaceted – no one worker is restricted to just one job. The Parks and Rec Department is composed of people with different personalities that work together seamlessly to plan these weekend programs all year long and at the same time keep our parks mowed and cared for.

Robust parks and recreation programs help our community offer a good quality of life. It’s hard to imagine what the community would be like without these programs.

July is National Parks and Recreation Month, and the National Recreation and Parks Association is encouraging people to explore the “undiscovered” roles and redefine how you think about local parks and recreation.

We are blessed with a number of parks in the City of Elizabethton – the Covered Bridge Park, Cat Island Park, which has a walking trail as well as playground equipment and ball parks, Riverside Park in Black Bottom, the park at the Senior Center, and Kiwanis Park. These are some popular parks that our citizens frequent. Also maintained by the City and Parks and Rec is the Linear Walking Trail, which extends from East Side School, through the Cat Island and Covered Bridge Parks under the Elk Avenue and Broad Street Bridges, down Race St. There are people who walk this trail daily. In addition to the parks, the trail is maintained by the Parks and Rec Department of the City of Elizabethton.

The parks not only add to the personality of this town, but they add to our pleasure and enjoyment.

We are blessed to have parks and trails in our town for walking, picnicking, music programs, and just to visit for the children to play on the swings and slides or to run off some extra energy.

We say thank you to the Elizabethton Parks and Recreation Department for the energy and time they put in to making our parks beautiful and the events they plan weekly.