Online in the Great Outdoors

Smithville’s Green Brook Park Adds Wi-Fi

Patrons attending church concerts at the Green Brook Park amphitheater in Smithville can feel free to post some videos to social media while they’re there. They won’t even have to use their cellphone’s data plan thanks to the park’s new free Wi-Fi.

Green Brook Park has evolved since its early days as Smithville’s original water station, City Administrator Hunter Hendrixson says. The park came about in the early 1970s after U.S. Representative Joe L. Evins convinced his colleagues to try the Model City program in a rural area, starting with his hometown in DeKalb County.

Model City brought new funds for several projects, including a new city hall and Green Brook Park. Now, the park is home to several shelters, a playground, an amphitheater, and even a splash pad.

Connecting The Community

The city’s most recent addition to the park is DTC’s fiber internet, which provides enough bandwidth for security cameras and Wi-Fi throughout the property, Hunter says. “We’ve been talking about it for a while, then-Mayor Josh Miller and the board of aldermen decided to go ahead and fund it. It’s there for the city, and it’s there for the people who use the park.”

DTC was extremely helpful in providing the services at the park, according to Hunter. “They’re always there for the city and always have been, so we’re very pleased with the results,” he says.

The Wi-Fi will come in handy for residents who reserve shelters in the park for reunions, birthday parties, and similar events. There’s no rental fee to use them, though the city does encourage donations when people make their reservations. “Some people make big donations, some make smaller ones,” Hunter says. “It just depends on what they can give.”

Attractions

The city added a splash pad in 2022. Water shoots from different spots on the ground onto a safe surface where kids can run and play. “It’s been a big hit in the 2 years we’ve had it,” Hunter says.

There are a few basketball goals. They’re not regulation courts, Hunter says, but big enough for some pickup games. Word is just now starting to get out about the newest game in town — disc golf. The park has added a course that attracts players.

1 of the park’s most popular features is the walking trail, which Hunter says is used every day. It’s the home base for the American Cancer Society Relay for Life each year. While participants walk the trail, bands play from the amphitheater, where those not walking can gather.

“The park is a pretty important part of the city,” Hunter says. “It offers a lot of recreation. We don’t have a lot of other options in the city, so we try to do what we can.”

For more information, or to reserve a spot at Green Brook Park, call (615) 597-4745.

Published with permission from DTC.