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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Parks and Rec plans 10K race, future development projects

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This winter, local runners will have a new opportunity to see Wrightsville Beach when the town hosts the newly created Wrightsville Beach 10K.

The 6.2-mile run, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 13, will feature a course that travels over Salisbury Street, Pelican Drive, Waynick Boulevard, the Trask Drawbridge and Causeway Drive.

Katie Ryan, parks and recreation program supervisor, told the town’s parks and recreation advisory committee during its Monday, Sept. 14 meeting that funds raised from the race will benefit the parks and recreation department and cover expenses for the free movies and concerts the park hosts, along with other costs.

Ryan also said she is looking for local businesses to sponsor the race, and that donor levels are yet to be determined.

At the meeting, the parks and recreation committee also reviewed new projects that could receive support from the North Carolina Parks and Recreation Trust Fund Grant, which provides dollar-by-dollar matching grants to municipal governments for recreational projects that serve the public.

The committee’s project ideas include replacing playground equipment and creating paths for walkers and cyclists.

“Because of how environmentally conscious the people in our town are, which is who we’re representing, you need to consider the surface,” said committee member Sandy May.

Ryan suggested constructing a pervious path that water can run through. Committee member Susan Collins suggested researching pavers.

Another project idea was to improve the park’s volleyball courts.

“Sprucing up the court and replacing the nets might encourage more use of it,” Ryan said.

Ryan also updated the committee on the farmers market.

“This is the first year it’s run through September. Normally, it ends at Labor Day,” she said.

According to Ryan, attendance numbers have been high for vendors and shoppers.

“We had a school group come in,” she said.

However, not all of this year’s vendors have adhered to the rules of selling locally raised produce.

“We did have a few sneak in bar-coded produce,” Ryan said. “It happened several years ago.”

The committee also announced that Bark in the Park, an annual event highlighting canine athletes, is scheduled for Oct. 3 at 11 a.m.

The competition, open to both mixed-breed dogs and purebreds, is also known as the Skyhoundz Hyperflite Canine Disc Championships.

Last year’s canine athletes included Maverick, a chocolate Labrador retriever, a Doberman pinscher named Panama and a three-year-old boxer mix named Mr. Tappy.

Each human competitor has 60 seconds to throw the disc. Teams, each composed of one dog and one human, accumulate points based on the distance of each throw, and whether the dog catches it. If the dog catches it with all four paws off the ground, it gets an extra point.

The rain date for the competition is Sunday, Oct. 4.

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