ROLE OF THE COUNTY

Catawba County does not have a recreation system. However, at this writing, the County is holding public hearings on developing passive recreation parks at Baker's Mountain and at a second location on the Catawba River. The County may also have an interest in cooperating in the development of a soccer complex, possibly at a new middle school site.

In the future, the County may also become involved in programming for recreation. Many county programs have started by utilizing school sites.

County-wide, there remains a need to preserve open space and to provide large areas for relatively passive forms of recreation which represents the kinds of recreation which most people prefer. These types of parks should be designed to serve all residents of the County, and may be of particular value to the urban dweller who may have limited opportunities to enjoy a natural environment.

Basically, the role of the County should be to provide a broad umbrella of creation service for all County residents, to coordinate and cooperate with other agencies in the provision of services, and to utilize the County's existing resources to the optimum extent in the provision of these services.

If it elects to start a recreation program, the County should pursue joint school park planning where new schools are planned, and should cooperate in the development of recreation facilities on school sites.

While it is beyond the scope of this study to make specific recommendations for the location of areas and facilities to be supported by County government, it is hoped that the County will, in the future, pursue the provision of parks and recreation programs and services.