Page 25 - 2018 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report - City of Winston-Salem

RECREATION

City residents enjoy an enviable array of recreational opportunities: The department’s 17 recreation centers collectively o er hundreds
the excitement of college sports, championship-caliber golf of programs and activities for all age groups. The centers are also
courses, a national tennis tournament and professional bike racing, tied in to WinstonNet, the community high-speed computer
minor league baseball, North Carolina’s second largest fair, and network that was created to ensure that all citizens have access to
many other amenities provided by City government, local the opportunities that computers provide, even if they don’t have
universities, and businesses. The City’s Piedmont location gives a computer at home.
residents easy access to both the North Carolina mountains and its In 2013, the 15,000-seat Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial
world-famous beaches.
Coliseum was purchased from the City by Wake Forest University
Aside from becoming an attractive City for professional cycling, for $8 million. Wake Forest’s basketball team uses the facilities and
Winston-Salem residents seeking to bike for their own tness, now has the opportunity to sell naming rights to help support its
recreation or general transportation can take advantage of 25 athletic programs. The City and Wake Forest have agreed to keep
miles of greenways and 11 o cial City bike routes, including 18 the name and the veterans’ memorial designation on the coliseum
miles of on-street marked bike lanes. In spring 2018, the City façade and on its marquee as part of any sale, although the school
celebrated the opening of the 1.7-mile Long Branch Trail, which may pursue naming rights for the coliseum. The coliseum
connects downtown and Innovation Quarter to the existing Salem continues to host concerts and family entertainment.
Creek Greenway. The trail takes walkers, runners and bikers along The City still owns the 4,500-seat Fairgrounds Annex, a free-standing
an inactive Norfolk and Western Railway line that once carried facility with a basketball court that can be set up for a regulation-
tobacco products from Winston-Salem to Roanoke, Virginia.
size hockey rink. In fall 2017, the Annex became the home base for
All of these amenities are managed by the Winston-Salem a new hockey team, the Carolina Thunderbirds.
Recreation and Parks Department, which is recognized as a The City also owns the adjacent fairgrounds, home to the Dixie
leader in serving the recreation needs of its residents. Through public Classic Fair. Second in size only to the N.C. State Fair, the Dixie
meetings and a special designated web page, the City is currently Classic Fair draws more than 325,000 visitors annually from as far
seeking public input as it develops a new Bicycle Master Plan.
away as Virginia, Tennessee, and South Carolina to enjoy the rides,
Thanks to a 2014 bond referendum, a former Vulcan Materials play games on the midway, and eat delicious “fair food.” The fair
quarry has been transformed into Quarry Park, 200 acres of also features concerts, family entertainment, a petting zoo, and
mostly wooded land. Visitors can now see the Winston-Salem exhibits and contests for livestock, crops, crafts, and baking that
skyline in the distance from a pier overlooking a freshwater lake. draw thousands of entries.
Another bond project, the $4 million construction of a new marina, Bowman Gray Stadium, a legendary site for NASCAR’s longest-
training building, playgrounds and restrooms at Salem Lake, was running weekly racing series, is also the home eld for the WSSU
completed in fall 2017.
Rams football team. The City and WSSU are in discussion about the
Also as a result of the bonds, the new Winston Waterworks water possible purchase of the stadium by WSSU, pending approval by the
park opened in spring 2018. The park, which includes a pool, N.C. Legislature. The purchase of the stadium and surrounding
diving area, spray ground, restrooms, concession area and shelter, acreage would provide opportunities for future campus growth.
is an enormously popular addition to Winston Lake Park, which WSSU will also honor provisions in the stadium’s contract with
also includes the Winston Lake Golf Course. Recreation and Parks Winston-Salem Speedway, Inc., to continue the lease for NASCAR
also operates the Reynolds Park Golf Course. races through 2031.
In all, Recreation and Parks operates and maintains 74 parks. The BB&T Ballpark, home of the Winston-Salem DASH Class-A
Among them are 51 picnic shelters, 47 playgrounds, 43 soccer professional baseball team, is a beautiful, classically-designed brick
elds, 47 softball elds, 112 tennis courts, eight pools, six volleyball ballpark. The ballpark includes luxury suites and a children’s play
courts, 25 basketball courts, a hobby park, a football eld, and two area with a merry-go-round.
dog parks. The Fairgrounds Skate Park o ers 15,200 square feet The Winston-Salem Open Tennis Tournament marked its eighth
of ramps, quarter pipes, grinding rails, bank ramps and more for year in 2018. The Open is held in a new tennis facility constructed
skateboarders of all abilities. The park has a 325-foot-long “pump” next to BB&T Field, the Wake Forest University football stadium.
track, an undulating track of dips and banks that helps riders The stadium includes 13 courts, making it eligible to host future
master the basics of how to balance and handle their bikes, NCAA tournament events.
skateboards and roller skates without the risk of major injury.

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