A little over 100 UCBPA members and citizens attended the first annual Light the Night in Wilson Park on December 1. Unfortunately the lights on the Emily Link Gazebo were on for only two seconds before the ground fault interrupter shut off the power.  Martin Shafer and Bill Collins, the county maintenance supervisor, spent much of December 4 correcting the issues and adding timers purchased by Union County Business and Professional Association. Thanks to the cooperation between Union County and UCBPA, the gazebo remained lighted each evening until after the holidays.

I recently spoke to Preservation Union County board member Betty Bullen to learn more about the nonprofit organization and what it does for Union County.
Preservation Union County currently operates under the Knox Heritage umbrella, Knox Heritage having received a grant from National Historic Preservation to do outreach work with the 16 surrounding counties and creating the East Tennessee Preservation Alliance.

The 4th Annual Thunder in the Park, free professional fireworks show will light up the night sky in Maynardville, Tennessee, on Saturday evening, August 31, 2019. The gates open at 5:00pm, so be there with the family and some lawn chairs at Wilson Park to witness the county’s signature event. Last year’s nearly 8,000 attendees can share that the event was a spectacular light show with an array of family friendly activities available in addition.

Double Up Food Bucks, a SNAP Doubling Program, Kicks Off in Union County on Saturday, August 3.

Maynardville – The Union County Farmers Market and Seven Springs Farm to Table farm store are excited to announce the kickoff of the Double Up Food Bucks (Double Up) program on Saturday, August 3rd in partnership with Nourish Knoxville and the Tennessee Department of Health.

Summer is in full swing at the Union County Farmers Market. The market is located in Wilson Park and open on Saturdays from 10am – 1pm. Our new Saturday hours allow our farmers to harvest early on Saturday morning bringing you the freshest possible produce. We hope the later hours will also encourage you to take advantage of the food trucks that are joining us! Enjoy a snack, breakfast or lunch.

Summer is in full swing and Union County has a festive, family friendly event planned in the near future. The City of Maynardville along with Maynardville Public Library is sponsoring a Movie in the Park night at Wilson Park on Friday night, July 19, 2019.

It's another first for Union County, and a win for Union County's canine companions. The county is one of 37 statewide winners of the Boyd Foundation's 2018 Dog Park Dash grant, aimed at creating pet friendly spaces throughout Tennessee. Fifty communities applied for the grant.

What do a new playground, a drunk driving simulator and exercise for seniors have in common?

They're all coming to Union County with state grants applied for by the Union County Mayor's office.

A state grant may mean great things ahead for parks in Union County. The process to develop a strategic plan for growth and development of parks is already well underway, and Union County Mayor Mike Williams said results may be seen as early as February.