City Of Milton: Parks And Recreation Department Wins District's Agency Of The Year Honors

Press release from the City of Milton:

10/27/2021 1:26 PM

The City of Milton’s Parks and Recreation Department has been named Agency of the Year in Georgia’s 7th district in recognition of its outstanding work and service to the community.

This award from the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association (GRPA) reflects 12-plus months filled with a significant amount of change, challenges and – even with all that – remarkable accomplishments. It’s the second time Milton has earned this recognition, with the other coming in 2016.

“We are proud and grateful for this honor, which means a great deal coming from colleagues who know the parks and recreation field so well,” said Milton’s Parks and Recreation Manager Tom McKlveen. “Yet it really belongs to members of the amazing Milton community, whose ongoing love and appreciation for our facilities and programs have allowed us to grow and prosper.”

Milton’s Parks and Recreation team received the award at the state association’s annual 7th District banquet held Wednesday, October 27, in Jefferson. GRPA divides the state into seven districts, with the 7th including Fulton, Gwinnett as well as Forsyth counties and stretching to far northeast Georgia. Agency of the Year honors are given in three different population categories, with Milton qualifying in the middle group of 20,001 to 50,000 residents.

The nomination period spanned from September 1, 2020, to August 31, 2021, during which Milton (like other agencies) coped with a COVID-19 pandemic that made operations complex while simultaneously driving up demand for parks and programs. On top of that, during this period, Milton’s Parks and Recreation Department saw its leadership change (and its staffing temporarily decrease) with the departure of its longtime director and the promotion of McKlveen to take his place. Its fulltime staff consists of Thomas Rhodes, Emily Groth and McKlveen.

Even then, the City added numerous arts and athletic programs, including photography classes and an adult soccer league. It also collaborated with new partners to run those and other activities and to provide needed indoor and outdoor spaces. The Parks and Recreation Department also assumed control (from Public Works) of the City’s open “passive” parks, including Birmingham Park and some greenspaces purchased through the voter-approved $25 million bond.

The interests of Milton citizens remained front-and-center in all these advancements and, in fact, everything the Department undertook. To this end, the Parks and Recreation Department significantly ramped up its social media, signage, and other outreach efforts in order to better connect with and inform residents of key developments and opportunities.

And the Parks and Recreation has a lot more developments on the horizon. For instance, the City plans soon to unveil new trails at the Lackey Road greenspace; a new trail, pier and pavilion overlooking the lake at Providence Park; and a renovated clubhouse and trail at the former Milton Country Club.

“As momentous as the past year has been, the next one should be even more exciting,” McKlveen said. “We can’t wait to share it all with our citizens.”

This press release was produced by the City of Milton. The views expressed here are the author’s own.