Baxter Shows Off New Walking Trail Tuesday

Baxter officials and students gathered Tuesday to utilize the city’s new walking trail.

The trail wraps around the city’s park, which sits adjacent to Cornerstone Elementary and Baxter Primary School.

Mayor John Martin said he had a vision of improving the park when he took office. It became a reality after the town received a $20,000 grant from the Putnam County Health Department.

“We wanted a new park. We wanted a big park and through the cooperation of parks and recreation, we’re building an addition to the park that we’ve got now. We’re planning an amphitheater and we’ve already applied for a $75,000 grant for that. The walking trail in the old park is going to work together with our new park and it’s going to be a lot area that we are going to have a lot of walking.”

The new Baxter Seminary Park will be adjacent to the city’s current park. It’s a perfect addition for a town that’s growing, Martin said.

“We need a park to have people that wants to come to Baxter and be part of Baxter,” Martin said.

The mayor said he also sees a benefit to having the park next to the schools.

“We can have concerts at the amphitheater, but it’s really an addition to the schools so they can have plays or graduations,” Martin said. “It’s good for all the children, we had a big group come out this morning from the primary school to do a walk. That means a lot to the two schools and to have activities for them.”