C O L L I E R V I L L E P A R K S , R E C R E A T I O N , C U L T U R A L A R T S , A N D C O M M U N I T Y S E R V I C E S D E P A R T M E N T

/ / 2 0 1 5ANNUAL REPORT

TABLE OF CONTENTSYear in Review 2 Hinton Park 32015 Goals 4Advisory Board 5Mission Statement/CIP Projects 62015 Class of Hall of Fame Inductees 7Athletic Division 8Maintenance Division 10 Special Events/Tourism Division 12 Recreation, Education & Instructional Division 14

Cultural Arts Division 16

Animal Services Division 18

Year In Review - 2015November 11, 2015 the Town dedicated the newly constructed Hinton Park. The 109 acre facility adds new trails, a disk golf course, Performance Lawn, King of the Hill, two age appropriate playgrounds, five acre lake, large flex field and large open areas under giant specimen oaks.

Although the opening of Hinton will provide many additional leisure opportunities. It will also require additional operational responsibilities. The Parks Maintenance division will have to mow, trim, spray and fertilize these grounds as well as maintain additional irrigation systems, rest rooms, and landscape areas.

In 2015 we welcomed the second class to the Collierville Parks Hall of Fame. These individuals have demonstrated a deep commitment of service to the Parks Department for many years.

We registered a record number of participants in our youth Basketball program, experienced continued growth in youth Baseball and Softball, and provided a wide variety of Adult Athletic opportunities.

The Harrell Theatre at H. W. Cox Jr. Park hosted over 126 events in 2015, including twelve major productions in conjunction with the Collierville Arts Council and other community partners. These events drew an attendance of 30,000 participants.

During 2015 Collierville Senior Group travelled over 17,160 miles enjoying trips to such places as New York and Germany. The Department also started design work in 2015 on a new Senior Center located in the ColliegeStreet Recreation Center.

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Hinton Park

Special Events were again a large part of the Department’s ability to provide a high quality of life for our citizens, hosting fourteen major events such as Independence Day Celebration, with over 15,000 in attendance, Collierville Youth Fishing Rodeo, Christmas Tree Lighting, 39th Annual Christmas Parade, Veterans’ Day Celebration, Father Daughter Dinner Dance and more.

During 2015 the Department also constructed two additional lighted Athletic fields at Progress Road Park; replaced score broads at two Baseball/Softball complexes; provided additional irrigation systems at three parks and Jimmy Lott Parkway; and replaced vital turf equipment in the maintenance division. The Department began design work and specifications for Animal Shelter improvements, new parks Maintenance Facility, Wolf River Blvd. Boardwalks and trails, and new Senior Center.

Collierville Animal Services became an active partner with PetSmart Charities Rescue Waggin’ Program and the Pets on Wheels Program providing over 169 puppies for adoption to various Humane Facilities along the East Coast. The Shelter provided adoptes for over 1,496 animals to the general public in 2015.

An important part of the Collierville Parks is volunteers; the Department was served by over 144,458 volunteer hours from coaches to Shelter aides to theatre productions helpers in 2015. The Parks Advisory Board appointed by the Board of Mayor and Alderman not only provided advice to the elected officials concerning Parks issues, but worked on such projects as Baseball field rentals, Nikki McCray Park Plan, concessions operations, and the Flag Football program.

Collierville Parks personnel continued in 2015 to provide quality services to the citizens of this commu-nity and re-dedicated themselves to making a difference.

Hinton ParkTown opens newest major Park....the opening of Hinton Park now provides the Town with three major Parks located in the North, Central, and Southern regions of Collierville.

Phase I of the 109 acre Park, completed in November 2015, features large wide open spaces, specimen Oak trees, and a five acre fishing lake. The Park features an adventure playground, Performance lawn, King of the Hill, walking trails, a huge flexible playing field, and a disk golf course.

Bids were received for Hinton Park in July 2014. The Board of Mayor and Alderman approved a contract with Wagner Construction on August 25, 2014 in the amount of $2,877,000. There were five change orders involved in the construction project. These change orders increased construction days to 67 due to inclement weather, and increased the contract price by $129,133.13 to a new contract price of $2,956,133.13.

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Expand on Collierville School Ties• Meet with schools to develop plan for usage of facilities for indoor activities.• Develop closer ties with music and drama programs to share facilities and programs.• Work with schools to use all available athletic fields.• Develop plan for possible use of stadium area and track.

Open Hinton Park • Plan ribbon cutting ceremony.• Hire, supply, and establish Hinton crew.• Develop a plan for gaining control of grounds.• Work with Public Information Office on promotions.• Evaluate usage and care of facility.

Expand Technology to Improve Efficiency in Turf Management• Continue GPS and mapping of the Town’s irrigation systems.• Complete grow-in and establishment of new fields at Progress Road and Hinton Park.• Continue to improve Town Square’s turf with required tree trimmings, removals, and best turf practice for shade tolerant grasses.• Begin linking irrigation controllers to maintenance shop computers.

Continue to Enhance Local Tourism Efforts • Develop and manage “Amos” Campaign.• Update department and town brochures.• Develop process for all event providers to coordinate and work together.• Schedule two Motor-coach tours.

Expand Collierville Greenbelt System• Identify potential alignment of Wolf River Greenbelt Trail East from W. C. Johnson to TN205.• Begin construction of Wolf River Boulevard Trail.• Identity tie-ins of Wolf River Boulevard Trail to Halle Plantation - Almadale Farms.• Connect Nonconnah Regional Trail to W. T. Price property and Sanders Creek Regional Trail.

Improve Youth and Adult Athletic Leagues and Opportunities• Increase inter-mural (9-12 grades) participation by offering two additional opportunities.• Implement youth flag football program.• Develop additional baseball/softball practice areas at batting cages.• Develop a fall travel baseball league for AAA and major league teams.

Expand Programming Opportunities • Develop Nature Education Room at W. C. Johnson House.• Work with local organizations to expand Camp Smile sponsorship.• Expand senior adult programs through surveys and focus group meetings.• Define specific space needs and programming opportunities for seniors.• Develop a history (inventory) of all department programming offered, past and present.

2015 Department Goals

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Parks Advisory BoardPURPOSE/DUTIES/AUTHORITY OF BOARD: To plan and promote a system of parks and recrea-tion facilities and recreational programs; interpret the community recreation program and needs of public officials and the general citizenship; serve as a forum in the introduction of innovative ideas, concepts, programs, policies and procedures; assist in matters relating to the maintaining of the highest standards in parks/recreation leadership and in the quality of the program service; assist the park/recreation department in recruiting voluntary leadership to work with parks/recreation programs and activities; assist the parks/recreation staff in evaluating recreation programs & activities and in devel-oping program priorities; review and develop a program of parks and recreational facility and program expansion and forward to the Board of Mayor and Alderman; develop a long range recreational plan for the Town and recommend properties and/or facilities; and to evaluate and make recommendations to the BMA on the maintenance and utilization of all buildings and physical facilities devoted to parks and recreational programs within the Town.

From left: Rachelle Maier, Curt Vaughan, Steve Madden, Dr. Dan Lattimore - Chairman, Jay Fletcher, Campbell Hawkins, Chuck Lesnick - Vice-Chairman, Chris Myers and Alderman Maureen Fraser.

Mission Statement: The Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Advisory Board is to provide representation for the citizens of the Town of Collierville in partnership with the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Arts Depart-ment and the Mayor and Board of Alderman in promoting understanding, appreciation, participation and support for open spaces, parks, recreational opportunities, cultural activities, programs and facilities.

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Parks Department MISSION STATEMENT

It is the mission of the Collierville Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Arts Department to serve, educate, and enhance life for all of our citizens. To plan and provide a wide variety of affordable recreational, athletic, educational, and cultural activities and opportunities. To acquire, develop,

improve, beautify, and maintain a variety of parks, trails, and recreational facilities that provide all Collierville residents with leisure opportunities.

2015 Capital Improvement ProjectsTown Square Restrooms ................................................... ..............................$18,000

Playground Surfaces Renovations........................................ ...................................$50,000

Suggs Park Improvements...................................................... ............................. $100,000

Park Maintenance Equipment .......................................................................... ....$115,000

Shelby Dr. Property - parking area........................................................................$125.000

Parks Maintenance Complex..................................................................................$300,000

College Street Recreation Center............................................................................$380,000

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Class of 2015 Hall of Fame Inductees

Mary Jean Smith is a lifelong resident of Collierville, TN. Mrs. Smith has been active on the Arts Council from its inception in 1987 where she worked tirelessly to promote the Arts in Collierville. She is active in many Collierville community organi-zations including the Collierville Arts Council. Mrs. Smith is the mother of ten, a grandmother of 21, and great grandmother. She is the owner of two Town Square businesses, founder/hostess of “Symphony in the Rose Garden”, a corporate sponsor of the Collierville Arts Council, and is responsible for raising thousands of dollars for the Arts Council events. She is quick to respond to help fill a need for the community, even taking the lead role in a past production of “The King and I”. Over the years, she has served on several Town of Collierville boards and commissions including the Arts Council and Planning Commission. She is being honored for her service to the Collierville Arts Council.

Carl Swearingen was a graduate of the University of Tennessee. Carl passed away December 5, 2014. Carl and his wife Cathy (also deceased) have three children, Stephen, Ryan, and Carly. Carl dedicated his life to volunteerism and had a deep commitment to inspire the youth of Collierville. He coached ice and roller hockey, as well as recreational soccer and lacrosse. He served on the Collierville Parks Advisory Board for three years, his last as Vice Chairman. He was the Executive Board liaison in 2014 for the West TN Girls Lacrosse Association (TGLA). Carl was so dedicated to getting girls lacrosse off the ground that he literally reworked and rewired the sprin-kler system at the freshman football field to make it suitable for practice. When the girls lacrosse program grew too big, Carl divided them into age groups which doubled his practice time. Carl inspired others to be better and do more than they thought they could. He was always willing to go the extra mile for the youth (and adults) of Collier-ville. He loved his Town and the people in it and is being honored for his volunteer service to Collierville Parks.

A ceremony was held on October 25, 2015 to honor both Mary Jean and Carl. Carl’s children accepted the award on his behalf.

From left to right: Stephen, Carly and Ryan Swearingen.

Athletics Division

Secured the NCAA Division III Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Women’s Softball Tournament:As part of the Town’s ongoing sports tourism initiatives, the department teamed with Rhodes College to prepare and submit a bid package to host the 2016 NCAA Division III Southern Athletic Association Women’s Softball Tournament at WC Johnson Park. The bid package included components highlighting the Collierville community as well as specifically detailing our softball complex’s unique position as a one of the premier softball complexes in the Mid-South Region. Collierville will serve as host of this championship event in April 2016.

Successful Transition from Tackle Football to Flag Football:The department observed a significant decline in Tackle Football participation numbers since 2012 (15% each year). In 2014, a survey was sent to our Tackle Football participants and over 3,000 partici-pants in all programs that we offered. We asked if their children were playing Tackle Football. If not, we asked why they were not participating in Tackle Football. 47% of the people surveyed said their children were not playing Tackle Football because of safety reasons. The department then worked with the Park Advisory Board and the High School Booster Club to provide Tackle Football for children in grades 3rd-6th and a Youth Flag Football program. This first year, we had 168 players sign up in grades 1st-6th, which was a sixteen player increase from Tackle Football in 2014. We are expecting even higher participation in 2016 according to overly positive feedback from our participants.

Offerded a new Fall Girls Softball Program:The department offered the first season of Fall Girls Softball in the fall of 2015. This year, we had 4 teams of girls in the 7 and 8 year old division. It is our hope that this will continue to grow, not only the 7 and 8 year old division, but every division from 7-18 years old. We received positive feedback from our participants, so we are expecting an even larger spring 2016 season.

Accomplishments for 2015• 4th Annual Sportsmanship Awards Banquet• No fee increases for youth baseball, football, tee ball, volleyball, basketball, and softball programs for the fourth consecutive year.• Have continued approval ratings above 90% for staff in our youth sports programs and above 85% approval rating for officials for the fifth consecutive year, from post season parental evaluations.• Continued high approval rating for online sports registration and facility rentals.• Total increase of 21% for all youth sports participation.

Mark Ellis - Recreation & Sports Manager Brad Heacox - Athletic Coordinator

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“We love the emphasis that the

Town sports programs put on

sportsmanship and having fun.

We look forward to playing many

sports programs for many years.”

2015 Youth Basketball survey

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Maintenance DivisionThe Maintenance Department had a banner year with the opening of HInton Park and a new crew to

go with it. The division continued work on the addition of irrigation lines, heads and rotors, to continue

the growth of the Town wide irrigation system. The division also continued adding more bulbs to the

landsacape beds and additional flowers around town to enhance the landscaping and welcome all visitors

to the Town of Collierville.

2015 Highlights:

~ The Division constructed and grew-in two additional Soccer fields at Progress Road Park. This provided additional lighted game fields with a total of 110,000 square feet of game surface.

~ The Division continued to improve the Towns irrigated property with the completion of the Hwy 72 median irrigation system that added 2.42 miles of pipe and 662 irrigation heads. Cox Park Soccer irrigation was also improved with the addition of 1,100 linear feet of pipe and 25 irrigation heads to that system as well as the conversion from conventional wire control to a newer 2 wire control system.

~ Parks made several additions of fencing that both improved aesthetics, such as the 138 feet of new buckboard fencing at Nikki McCray and Estanaula Parks and served to protect Town property such as the 530 feet of single rail fencing at the Progress Road Park parking area.

~ The division developed a map and brochure of the Collierville Arboretum.

~ We improved our ability to map and track our areas of responsibility by creating GPS maps of the Town’s trail systems, Right of Way responsibilities, and areas covered under our weed control program. This allows us to better visualize where our resources are being used and allows us to quickly generate aerial photographs showing employees and contrac-tors where work sites are located.

~ We installed 3,000 linear feet of drainage piping at the Saddlebrook lots in Johnson Park that will allow the ground to drain better improving mowing and weed control consistency.

Neil Wiseman - Maintenance Manager

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New Additions:~ 2.42 miles of pipe and 662 irrigation heads at Hwy 72 irrigation~ 890 feet of fence enclosing .8 acres

Cox Soccer Irrigation addition:~.8 miles of pipe and 62 irrigation heads added at Cox soccer fields

Within the Town’s Park system:~ 6 acres of irrigation was added to Athletic play and practice area.

Landscaped beds (square footage) increased from

94,672 in 2014 to 96,607 in 2015

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Miles of underground irrigation

lines increased from 43.39 miles

in 2014 to 47.19 miles in 2015.

From July 2015 when the QR Fit trail signs were installed through December 2015 there were 907 users.

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Special Events/Tourism Division Sheila Moody - Special Events/Tourism Coordinator The Special Events/Tourism Division has continued to provide quality events for the Town of Collierville citizens. The division offered Mother/Son Bowling, Father/Daughter Dinner Dance, Kollierville Kite Day, Youth Fishing Rodeo, Independence Day Celebration, Movie in the Park (Cinderella), Christmas Tree Lighting, 39th Annual Christmas Parade, and Christmas in Collierville. This year the division also introduced the QR Fit trail system. This unique new exercise concept gives the citizens of Collierville an alternative to walking or jogging as the system changes monthly to provide a variety of exercises so the returning users have new exercises each month. The division also placed an ad in the Chamber of Commerce magazine (photo on opposite page) that directed readers to the parks website for more information. Within the ad, the 38017 “LiveLifeLocal” campaign was also promoted.

With the help of the Tourism Advisory Commission, the division has continued to provide long and short sleeved t-shirts to the community as part of the “LiveLifeLocal” campaign, along with new banners for the parking lots of all the parks and 38017 stickers. This division was also involved in the planning and construction of the newest Park in Collierville, Hinton Park. To see this project go from a bean field to one of Collierville’s premier Parks was a wonderful learning experience. With an emphasis on passive recre-ational opportunities, Hinton Park provides open space with large Oak trees, a Disc Golf course, King of the Hill for kids to roll down, a Performance Lawn for concerts and a great playground.

The new design of the Parks Department newsletter “The Parks Insider” was implemented and distributed by this division and was mailed out to every Collierville resident twice a year for a total of 30,000 newsletters.

Leads generated from ad in Tennessee Vacation guide:

1,712 contacts. Up from 1,042 in 2014.

Tourism Advisory Commission

From left: Watty Brooks Hall, Laura Todd, John Duncan, Shannon Izquierdo, Ashley Carver, Fran

Persechini, Chip Petersen, Stacey Arnold, Tammy Piker, and Polly Shipley. Not pictured: Nancy

Bassett, Shannon Byers, Tamara Swain, Tina Parmar, Missy Marshall and Alderman John Stamps.

The Recreation Program Coordinator is responsible for the planning and implementation of educational and leisure programs for the community. Programs are offered for youth through senior adults. These programs are always changing and evolving with local interests and trends. In FY 2015 these programs had total participation as follows:

• Instructional Program hours: 1,657• Tennis Instructional hours at Cox Park Tennis Courts (group/private): 693• Adult Recreational Tennis League participants: 89• USTA Home Teams (23) with (12 players/team/visiting teams) : total 1,104 participants• Jr. Team Tennis host practices/team matches (fall/spring): average of 100 youth/100 adults involved in this program with on-site participation (overall total 2,400) • Private/Group Lessons: 317 participants• Collierville High School Tennis Team Facility Usage at Cox Park Tennis Courts: 579 hours• Departments Head Tennis Professional also Head Coach for Collierville High School Tennis Team for Instruction and Coaching. • Tennis Court Resurfacing on Courts 5 & 6 at Cox Park and Repairs to Courts 3 & 4• Educational Camps at WC Johnson House: 6 camps with a total of 89 participants• Senior Bingo/Lunch yearly participation: 540 • Brown Bag Bingo – 300 • Mexican Train Dominoes - 24•Senior Exercise (program started 22 years ago) yearly participation of 2,530 participants and with the guidance of two new instructors. Program meets 3 times a week with an average of 22 class participants per class.• Co-sponsor 55 Alive Driving course 2 times a year: 32 participants• Senior Adult Leisure Trips/Meetings participation: 136• Senior Trips in FY 2015: Mackinaw, MI/Budapest, Hungary to Prague, Czech Republic with Germany/ Austria/New York & Philadelphia/Memphis Zoo & Bass Pro Shop Downtown.• Total Senior travel miles in FY 2015: 10,710 air miles / 6,450 land miles• Camp Smile Special Needs Summer Camp (2 weeks): 25 campers per week (largest program partici-pation); also celebrated the program’s 19th year this summer.• Camp Smile Sponsorship donations from Kiwanis Club of Collierville / Collierville Civitan Club helped 10 participants attend camp, as well as, assist with field trip/activity expenses.• Camp Smile Staff (6) / Volunteer (4) hours: 300 staff/160 volunteer hours

New in FY 2015:• New Senior Program “Mexican Train Dominoes” implemented towards end of year.• Co-Sponsored New Program: “Autism Advocate Group” that meets at WC Johnson Park to walk the Trails and do group art programs at WC Johnson House for Special Needs Youth – 68 participants with Youth/Staff/Volunteers• Program Planning and Submittal of Program Change for Projected New Senior Center at College Street Recreation Center.• A total of 4 New Summer Camps were offered at the WC Johnson House this last summer – great response to all with a maximum enrollment of 15 per camp.

Recreation, Education & Instructional Division Lisa Gaither - Recreation, Education Instructional Coordinator

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Senior Trip to Philly and New York...Pictured on the steps where ROCKY Balboa trained. 15

R: Camp Smile

L: Youth Instructional

R: Senior Exercise Class

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The Harrell Theatre celebrated its twenty-eighth (28th) season and hosted over 30,000 guests in 2015. * Twelve (12) local artists were featured in our lobby art gallery, a collaboration with the Morton Museum of Collierville History.

* The Harrell Theatre is a true community theatre with all volunteer actors performing.

* The average budget for our full length musicals is $25,000 and is funded by the Collierville Arts Council, which is a 501c3 not for profit organization.

* Over 300 children participated in Performing Arts Camps and Workshops this year.

* The seventh (7th) annual Symphony in the Rose Garden was presented in May, and in spite of the threat of rain, we had over 250 guests

*Over 300 costumes were created for the productions of this past season.

The Harrell Theatre partners with several local organizations to increase the reach of the arts in Collierville. The Collierville Arts Council is the service provider for the Theatre and produces an annual season of Broadway-style shows. We partner with New Day Theatre to provide drama camps and classes and to provide a free show every August for the citizens.

The Community Art Gallery (located in the Harrell Theatre Lobby) showcases local visual artists and is maintained with a partnership with Morton Museum of Collierville History and the Collierville Arts Council.

Cultural Arts Division

In 2015 our volunteer hours were 7208.

Wayne Warren - Manager

Scene from A Christmas Story the Musical

Total cast members for 2015 - 360 volunteers

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Staff hours provided to the

Collierville Arts Council

totalled 1838 hours in

2015

Scenes from the Wizard of Oz

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Scenes from Hairspray

Theatre events ~ 126

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Animal Services DivisionMission Statement for the Town of Collierville Department of Animal Services: To enforce state and local animal control and welfare laws, provide humane, effective, courteous, and responsive animal care, and control services that enhance the quality of life for people and pets in our community. CAS is a Tennessee certified animal control facility and a certified veterinarian medical facility. Shelter Director, Nina Wingfield, certified animal control officer and cruelty investigator, leads a staff of four (4) full time employees and five (5) permanate part-time employees. All are trained at various levels through the National Animal Control Association.

Outreach Programs for 2015* PetSmart Charities Rescue Waggin’ program got of to a great start in 2015 sending 169 puppies from Collierville Shelter to Northern Humane societies with mandatory spay/neuter laws. *The PPAWS program is highly successful where dogs are placed with inmates at the Mark Luttrell Women’s Correctional Facility where they live with the inmates. Since the start of the Rescue Waggin‘ program, the inmates take Collierville puppies and foster them during their two week hold period before going on transport. This keeps the puppies out of the shelter and the inmates can work on their house breaking and crate training. Journals are kept on each puppy letting the new pet owner know what the puppies have learned, which helps them get acclimated in their new home. After the adult dogs complete the training, the dogs are offered for local adoptions. A certified trainer and CAS staff supervise the program. Over 400 dogs have successfully completed the training. *2015 Kids Camp - helped teach children about care, compassion, and responsibility for animals during the summer camps and school programs. Over 50 participants were onsite throughout 2015. * Paw Prints Pet Adoption Center is an offsite adoption program at the Carriage Crossing shopping Center. The center promotes adoptions and fundraising events, including FALL PAW FEST in October. A certified dog trainer uses the center on Sundays for dog training classes. CAS adopted dogs are allowed to attend free to brush up on their obedience skills. * 2015 was the 12th year with our PET OF THE WEEK on Saturday mornings with WMC TV Channel 5. This show brings our shelter pets into people’s homes all across Tennessee, Arkansas, and Missis-sippi, helping us to find more homes for animals.

Cat adoptions incresed almost 10% with the help of

our volunteers,

Nina Wingfield - Director

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Animal Intake ~ 1,496 for 2015

Volunteers donated over 60,000

hours in fostering & helping at

the shelter.

Over 8,000 people visited the animal shelter in 2015

CAS microchipped more than 10,000 animals

since July 2005

Four Eagle Scout projects in 2015 & a Girl Scout project of planting

200 bulbs for 2016 spring blooms

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440 West Powell RoadCollierville, TN 38017Tel: 901-457-2770Fax: 901-457-2771www.colliervilleparks.org

Class of 2015 Hall of Fame InducteesMary Jean Smith and the late Carl Swearingen