By Elisabeth Strillacci

SPENCER — The town of Spencer adopted a full plan for the future of parks, recreation and outdoor living less than two years ago, and since then they have wasted no time in seeking grants, tackling projects and growing the opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy outdoor living.

“But up until now, we’ve not had a department overseeing full calendar plans of events that larger cities have had like a summer concert series or movie nights or ongoing events,” said Town Manager Peter Franzese. “We have had groups of amazing volunteers who have planned individual events for different parts of the community, but not an actual department or official within the town to oversee our outdoor spaces and events on an ongoing basis.”

In November 2023, the town’s board of aldermen adopted the Creating Outdoor Recreation Economies (CORE) Strategic Plan, which was a step toward putting in place some actual oversight.

In developing CORE, the town collaborated with the N.C. Department of Commerce, Rural Economic Development Division staff members and local stakeholders in a strategic planning process to identify and develop outdoor recreation assets that present economic growth opportunities. The idea was to use outdoor recreation sites to increase tourism, encourage small business development, enhance quality of life for residents, plan for outdoor recreation site and infrastructure development, and even to grow and attract outdoor gear manufacturing industries. And part of that plan included recommended goals and objectives related to the creation of a Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.

In February of 2025, the town officially approved the creation of that advisory board to work with the town council on the direction of outdoor living.

The new board will consist of five members. Anyone who lives within the “planning and zoning jurisdiction of Spencer” is eligible. Terms will be staggered and town leaders hope residents will want to get involved.

The town also began the search for a new active living coordinator. While a formal director of parks and recreation might make sense down the road, in discussions it became clear what the town will need first is someone who can be actively involved in the planning and execution of the plans for events and activities, and who can be a liaison between the town council, the advisory board and residents.

For a town of about 3,500 residents, the plans for outdoor recreation are big.

In September of 2023, the town completed and opened phase one of the Rowan County side of the Yadkin River Trailhead Park. Davidson County had a head start on its side, but Spencer and Rowan have been determined to catch up. The first phase of the full plan for the site connects the Rowan side with the Davidson County side via the Wil-Cox Bridge. There are markers at the site where three of the 14 trails throughout North Carolina come together. In addition, the site is a historical marker for both Native Americans and military veterans. There is a bike repair stand on the site and future plans include not only more outdoor activities and connections to walking trails, but in time, a mixed use, higher density commercial and residential development on the former Finishing Plant site. Recently the town accepted an additional micro grant of $50,000 from the North Carolina Railroad Company (NCRR) to help fund studies to figure out the best way to get the site safe and prepared for development.

But the Yadkin River Trailhead Park is not by any means the only outdoor area the town is currently working on. In August of 2024, the aldermen directed Franzese to move forward with the contract with Ike’s Construction of Concord to build a new town park in front of town hall.

Years ago, there was a town park on the property. Spencer Special Projects Planner Joe Morris said that “area churches all agreed to raise the money for the park and do the planting. The property was owned by the railroad but the community built the park. We can do it again, it’s in our DNA.”

The board had set aside funds for the park but after spending a little over $230,000 on planning, grant applications and other preparations, the town had $1.84 million left to spend on construction.

The bid came in slightly over budget, but through “value engineering,” reconsidering some construction materials and some design elements, the cost was brought down to $2,175,700 It left the town more than $330,000 short, so the board has agreed to launch a capital fundraising campaign that Morris was to oversee.

Some parts of the plan are non-negotiable. One of the larger ticket items in the plan is an interactive water feature for children, and a $500,000 grant from the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund (PARTF) requires that element to be a part of the park. But between donations from residents and supporters and the continued search for additional grants, Franzese at last update though the town would have no trouble meeting the shortfall.

There are other small parks for which the town continues to provide upkeep and improvements, and the long range goal is to connect walking trails from the Yadkin River Park all the way into downtown Spencer, reaching the city park in front of town hall one day.

“We’d love to make it possible for people to walk to and from the river,” said Morris. “Someday.”