Chamber Notes: Centennial Park a great addition to downtown

By Gary Perkins

May 06, 2008 05:07 pm

— Just a couple tidbits today, to keep everyone updated, and create some food for thought. Anyone who has driven through Fort Gibson lately has seen the flurry of activity around the gazebo and Centennial Park, at the corners of Lee and Poplar Streets.
The gazebo structure itself looks to be just about finished, sod is being laid for grass and some new sugar maple trees, the brick paths leading to the gazebo, from the street, is just about complete. One note on that, a number of the bricks will later be removed, stamped or engraved with donor names, and replaced in the walkway.
Timing of the grand opening and shipment of the bricks did not allow for them to be stamped beforehand. Eventually, a sound system will make it possible to make announcements, or play music, from the gazebo, and have it broadcast all along the downtown streets. That will be great for events.
Despite the delays caused by Mother Nature, and other distractions, the official opening of the park was Friday.
I’m sure the town has a complete list of persons to thank for making the accomplishment of this project, but of particular note has to be the labor or Tim Espe, Don Ballew and Larry Dale Cooper, with behind-the-scene support of Theda Rowan and Kirk Boatright. I know this is just a partial list, which also should include spouses and family of the beforehand mentioned, but as I have walked by the project daily, these are the individuals I see out there continually.
When completed, it will be something we can all be proud of, and a bright focal point for our community.
Our weekly chamber luncheon has moved to the Courtyard Bistro, for May. This past Thursday, we enjoyed the company of Tonia Cooper, Denise Bain, Paula Foster, Kirk Boatright, Jerry Long and myself. Kirk filled us in on some of the great history of Fort Gibson. Our town was much more important in the early expansion of the west than most of us realize.
I would like to see someone publish a “Fort Gibson Chronicles,” maybe a weekly article for the newspaper.