Henry County is giving residents an opportunity to help design a park through an online survey scheduled to run until Dec. 5.
The county recently acquired approximately 117-acres adjacent to the Monogram Foods Smith River Sports Complex for the future development of its next destination known as Riverview Park. The land was obtained through a donation from Newco, Inc., and a grant from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation’s Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Since acquiring the property, a team of engineers and recreational experts have been developing a master plan, based on the constraints of the terrain, to unveil to the community. With the site analysis complete, the county is now seeking public opinion on what should be featured in the park.
“We want Riverview Park to provide recreational opportunities that are currently unavailable or scarce throughout the West Piedmont region,” said Roger Adams, the county’s Director of Parks and Recreation. “We’ve worked with a team of experts to come up with some excellent ideas, but we want this park to be created for and by the people who are going to use it. To that end, we hope to get a lot of feedback on this survey, so we know how to move forward with development.”
Some suggested ideas that are listed in the master plan are a zipline, a rope challenge course and an adaptive play area for children with special needs. The master plan also includes the possibility of a camping area complete with yurts, retrofitted rail cars, cabins and tents.
Ultimately, the survey is designed to gauge interest in the ideas included in the master plan and to provide a platform for residents to suggest their own ideas. As grant funds become available, the park will be developed based on the feedback received in the survey.
To access the survey, visit: https://www.henrycountyva.gov/riverview.
