В Маршалле торжественно открыли обновленный парк Смит с новым баскетбольным кортом и доступной тропой

‘A great day’: Improvements, additions unveiled at Smith Park in Marshall Published 5:42 am Friday, August 14, 2026 Jevin Smith celebrated his 5th birthday Monday frolicking around the new amenities at Marshall’s Smith Park, which is named in honor of his ancestors. Jevin – representing the fifth generation of the George Smith family – traveled from Palestine with his father, Kevin Smith, to join his grandfather, Leo Smith Jr., and aunt, Leo Myra Smith Frye, for a ribbon cutting in celebration of the recent improvements to the park at 700 Spring St. Upgrades include a new full-size concrete basketball court with striping, two new basketball goals, a new chain-link perimeter fence with entry gate, and an ADA-compliant concrete walking and jogging trail. The event was hosted by the Greater Marshall Chamber of Commerce and city of Marshall. “It’s awesome. From where it came from and where it is today, it’s good to see,” said Kevin Smith, whose great grandfather, George Smith, donated land for the park in the 1940s when it was originally created as Spring Street Park in the historically Black New Town community. “To see the upgrades, it’s amazing.” It was renamed Smith Park in 2004 in honor of the Smith family patriarchs who mainly built the park and supplied the concrete and labor for the community center. For Frye, it was an honor to see the evolution of the park that was built by the sweat of her grandfather, uncle and father. “Because of them, each generation from my aunt Sandra Johnson to my siblings, cousins, and nieces and nephews to our younger generation, including my grandnephew (Jevin) … have, can, and will find our way to contribute to our community. It’s such an honor to know the Smith family put their care into action and created a park that keeps on giving back to the community.” Councilman Leo Morris, who said many childhood memories were made at the park, described the ribbon-cutting “a great day for this community.” “It has been a long time in the way of coming, and it finally happened,” Morris said of the new amenities. “I’m glad for this community. I’m glad for the city of Marshall. The park looks wonderful.” The contractor for the Smith Park improvement project was Casey Slone Construction of Hallsville and the project manager/engineer was Stan Hayes of Hayes Engineering. The upgrades were funded by a Community Development Block Grant. The city previously approved $285,000 in carry-over funding specifically for improvements to Smith Park as part of the 2024 CDBG Annual Action Plan and Budget. Marshall Chamber Executive Director Stacia Runnels expressed how honored the chamber was to be able to celebrate the upgrades alongside community partners, stakeholders and people familiar with the evolution of the park. “The Marshall Chamber of Commerce is delighted to be a part of this ribbon cutting,” she said. Enhancing quality of life Marshall Mayor Amy Ware emphasized how spending time outdoors with friends and family improves quality of life. “With a somewhat limited budget, we have been working the last few years to do improvements in our park system,” Ware said. “We really hope this helps lead to even more community revitalization, because we know how important this park and the outdoors and coming together as people … our youth coming together and having somewhere productive to be … how important that is not only to our current circumstances, but also the future of the city.” Ware thanked the chamber for partnering with them to host Monday’s event and recognized those who were instrumental in the completion of the park project. Ware additionally gave special recognition to the descendants of George Smith. “We hope this is a testament to a legacy that will continue with your family, because legacy, at the end of the day, what we leave behind, the people we touch, the people we’ve brought together … that’s what truly matters,” Ware said. “So thank you all for coming today to help us recognize this step forward in our city.” As Marshall is one of the oldest cities in the state, she said it’s been a priority to balance preserving history with embracing the future and community growth. Ware recognized council members who were particularly instrumental in the project as they offered a unique perspective having frequented the park as a child. “They’ve seen Smith Park change through the years, using this park as children and growing up as adolescents,” Ware said. “So I love their perspective.” Reflections Sharing his memories, Morris recalled trekking from home to the park for ball games. “I was raised in the Sunny South area. Of course, we didn’t have a park in that area, so we had to come here to the park,” he said. “I remember many nights walking up that railroad track to come here and watch some Little League baseball or softball or whatever that was going on here at the park, and this was back in the early ’60s. “So I’m excited, and I’m happy that this has happened for this community,” Morris said. “And I want to invite everyone to come out and take advantage of all the things that we have here to offer here at Smith Park.” Councilwoman Risa Jordan Anderson said “it’s amazing” to see the changes at the park. “This reminds me of back in the day when I was a little girl. We would come to the park every night to watch the ball games and just walk around the park and just have a phenomenal time,” she said. “We’re really blessed that the community and the city came together to make this happen. Now the kids in the community can come out and play and have a great time out here.” Councilwoman Reba Godfrey said she’s also thrilled for the city’s youth to have a place to enjoy. “I know you love this court,” she said, looking at Marshall ISD basketball players who attended Monday’s event. “This is for you — the entire park — and it’s even for the old folks who want to walk around.” Officials recognized several former City Council members and city managers, who also pushed for park renovations during their tenures. Godfrey said upon her election to office, the council agreed to upgrade every park in the city. Smith Park was her “baby,” the one she championed the most. “I thank the Lord for sending (former City Manager) Melissa Vossmer to the city to explain to me what we needed to do to push the project over the top and (Assistant City Manager) Alex Agnor for getting the contract, and Stan Hayes for increasing our court. It is marvelous,” she said. “Out of all the parks, I think my baby is the prettiest baby in the city!” Ware also thanked Agnor for her efforts in taking on the challenge and getting the project to the finish line. Agnor thanked the community and the council for their patience. “We’ve already seen people out here enjoying these amenities, and we appreciate again the patience, and we look forward to you all enjoying this for many years to come,” Agnor said.