SPENCER — The committee working to bring the Yadkin River Park in Spencer to life had an informal gathering on July 20, receiving numerous updates and marking Sept. 8 for the ribbon cutting and official opening of the park.

Committee members Joe Morris, Steve Blount, Guy Cornman and others updated the group as a whole on where everything stands after taking a brief tour of the trailhead.

Joe Morris, Spencer’s planning manager, proudly showcased the new Trailhead before announcing that the Yadkin River Trailhead is substantially complete, including an American flag flying from a flagpole, the massive commemorative rock that will be engraved with “Yadkin River Trailhead,” a bicycle repair station, a rock wall and benches, trees, shrubs and flowers and paved parking to access the park and the trails.

The ribbon cutting, which will include town officials, major donors and community partners along with the public, is scheduled for Sept. 8 at 10 a.m.

“We are thrilled at the quality of construction and the appearance of finished product,” said Morris. “When we began the project a little over 3 years ago, we thought the budget would be about $540,000.  The bids we received were more than $750,000. The town persisted and contributors came forward. We are grateful for the very generous donations we received.”

The trailhead is designed to replicate the quality of the facilities on the Davidson County side of the river. The Wil-Cox Bridge, which connects the two parks, is 1,300 feet long. The trailhead adds another 1,000 feet to the length of the current trail. Eventually it will connect to the Spencer Greenway, which will create three miles of paths and sidewalks to downtown, the forthcoming Spencer Town Park and on to the Stanback Forest, and, eventually connecting to the Salisbury Greenway along Grants Creek.

“For now, we will begin to focus on a design for the 2.8 acres of land donated by the Yadkin Historical Museum Foundation, which will interpret the history of the Trading Ford area,” he added. “The trailhead is just the beginning. There is much more to be done.”

Zoning and Subdivision Administrator Steve Blount outlined the various planning and improvement projects underway that will help shape the future uses of the Yadkin River Park, trailhead and surrounding properties.

Currently underway is the “road diet” reconfiguration of Salisbury Avenue and U.S. Hwy 29. Starting in the fall of this year, during routine NCDOT resurfacing of these roads, Salisbury Avenue from 17th Street to about Jefferson Street will be resurfaced. As a part of that work, the road will be re-striped, changing it from its current four-lane configuration to a profile with two traffic lanes, a center turn lane and bike lanes on either side. It is planned that in about 2027, Salisbury Ave. and U.S. Hwy 29 from Jefferson to the Yadkin River will be resurfaced and re-striped in a similar configuration. This project will provide safe bicycling access from Salisbury (which has similar striping on their North Main Street), through downtown Spencer, out to the Yadkin River and the new Yadkin River Trailhead Park, and to points beyond in Davidson County.

The Creating Outdoor Recreation Economies (CORE) planning process, sponsored by the N.C. Department of Commerce, is underway and should be completed in a few months. Spencer is one of several communities in the state to receive this planning assistance. The planning process examines the existing outdoor recreation amenities, recognizes additional needed amenities and infrastructure, and creates a road map to development of future outdoor recreation related businesses. Folded into other planning efforts completed and underway, the CORE plan will give an economic incentive to the town, county and private developers to bring new businesses to this area.

EB-5861 is a partially-funded project that will create an urban greenway, providing pedestrian transportation routes that promote alternate transportation methods (walking, running, biking) through a network of sidewalks, pathways and greenways that will connect amenities, points of interest, residential areas, schools and neighboring communities. The proposed routing initially starts at a new Stanback Forest trailhead on 7th Street near Grants Creek, runs via new sidewalks past three schools, and then on to the new Yadkin River Trailhead Park along existing and new sidewalks. It would also run through the 100-acre Stanback Forest, connecting the town’s 8th Street Ballpark, the park’s 11th Street trailhead, and reconnecting to sidewalks at a new Salisbury Avenue trailhead and future education center in the 1400 block of Salisbury Avenue. Existing sidewalks will complete the loop through downtown Spencer and by the N.C. Transportation Museum, connecting all to the new Yadkin River District development. Future planning efforts will include a possible connection of the Stanback Forest trail system to Salisbury’s existing greenway system via a new portion of the County’s previously planned Grants Creek Greenway system.

The Yadkin River District planning project is a small-area plan focusing on the Trailhead Park, development of an adjacent 2.68-acre parcel as part of the park, and surrounding properties. This planning project will examine the possible development of the old N.C. Finishing Company property into a multi-use business/recreation park that will include recreational, commercial, retail and residential components. It will also involve examination of redevelopment opportunities in the adjacent Yadkin Village and on properties along the U.S. Hwy. 29 corridor leading back into Spencer.

Guy Cornman of the Davidson County Yadkin River Park Committee advised that Davidson County currently has $2,935,000 worth of construction projects underway at Yadkin River Park on the Davidson side. These projects include new children’s playground equipment in the forms of a train and the Wil-Cox Bridge to familiarize the children with the area’s rich railroad heritage and the historical bridge. Also included on the Davidson County site are planned indoor bathroom facilities and a bog garden near the existing dog park that is already under construction. In addition, a multipurpose, two-level Environmental Education Center will be constructed on the site of the old York Hill Restaurant. The building will contain classroom space for use by students from both Davidson County and Rowan County Schools and Catawba College.  The N.C. Forestry Service also wants to use the facility to train its staff. The building will also have a room dedicated to the display of historical artifacts associated with the area. Also included in the center will be an administrative office, and a commercial area to sell snacks, drinks, fishing supplies and offer kayak rentals. Artist drawings of these facilities are available. A drawing of a proposed rock observation tower to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution was also shown the committee.

“We are also very proud to announce the designation of the York Hill Battlefield site as a National Battlefield Heritage Site by the American Battlefield Trust,” said Cornman. “This will bring national recognition to our Yadkin River Park.”

Joining the committee for the meeting were Paul Mitchell, Davidson County Yadkin River Park Committee chairman; Greg Edds, chairman of Rowan County Commissioners; Jonathan Williams, Spencer mayor; Kelly Alexander and Betsy Mowery of the North Carolina Transportation Museum.