Dedicated to fun - Fayetteville, Arkansas Parks and Recreation Division

Parks & Recreation, Jan, 2004

Fayetteville, a city of about 58,000, is borne to the University of Arkansas and its famed Razorback athletic programs. A strong identity with sports and leisure is one of the town's longstanding hallmarks, and The city of Fayetteville's Parks and Recreation Division (PRD)--small in terms of numbers with three full-time and three part-time recreation employees--helps bring sporting opportunities to the community in a big way.

Along with the Fayetteville City Council, the PRD is ultimately responsible for all recreation programs offered by the city. Those programs that the PRD does not directly administrate are subsidized by the division's funds, and the PRD provides the facilities as well as maintenance. The PRD also works very closely with the Fayetteville Boys and Girls Club to oversee programs such as youth and adult basketball, youth tackle football, youth flag football, aquatic programs, gymnastics and table tennis.

The PRD directly operates and supervises youth soccer, youth slow-pitch softball, youth fast-pitch softball, adult softball, adult flag football and a number of aquatic programs. Division employees also serve on boards and committees to assist local sports associations in offering programs such as classic soccer, youth baseball, ultimate frisbee, frisbee golf and horseshoe pitching.

As with all communities demonstrating success from the standpoint of recreation, Fayetteville's mission with respect to its children is one of participation first, competition second. The PRD sees lifelong sports participation as a vital part of life from childhood onward; as long as kids are having fun, the PRD feels it is doing its job. The PRD adheres to the 50-percent rule every youngster plays in at least 50 percent of every game. However, Fayetteville recognizes the need for competitive sports as well, and works closely with entities such as the Arkansas Comets soccer team, which helps the PRD put on a skills clinic for youngsters in the fall. The Comets provide the expertise while the PRD supplies the facilities. In the last several years, Fayetteville has either hosted or co-hosted the Hampton Memorial National Invitational Soft-ball Tournament, (which includes 90 youth teams); the Fayetteville Rotary Club RayRo Softball Classic (featuring 75 youth teams); the Don Glass National Invitational Softball Tournament (including 125 teams); and the Ozark Classic Soccer Cup (160 teams strong every year),

The citizens of Fayetteville support recreation in concrete ways. In the mid-1990's, they voted to approve a hotel and restaurant tax to provide additional funding for the PRD. This funding ensures the provision of new equipment and personnel whose function is promoting and maintaining sports facilities and programs. Also, the PRD and Fayetteville Public Schools have a very close and positive relationship--the two organizations have a cooperative agreement for the joint use of all school playgrounds for community use after school hours.

The Fayetteville Police Department screens all volunteer coaches for criminal backgrounds, a practice that is clearly popular with parents and townsfolk. The PRD has no specific policy when it comes to The behavior of parents and coaches; rather, it relies on education through brochures to help forestall instances of negative behavior and encourage positive behavior in all its guises (e.g., cheering for kids on both teams rather than just for those on one's own child's team).

In terms of open space, the PRD is responsible for the management of 58 parks covering more than 3,300 acres. Included are more than 20 playgrounds, 31 sports fields, eight tennis courts, 10 volleyball courts, swimming pool, three fishing lakes, a BMX track, a skate park, picnic facilities, trails and more. The trail and greenways system is currently undergoing significant expansion, with more than $1.1 million in federal and city funds allocated to pedestrian-friendly enhancements undertaken within the past two years. Fayetteville presently has 14 miles of trails--8.5 miles are soft-surfaced trails within parks, with the remainder comprising hard-surfaced, multi-use trails along greenways and within the park system.