PENDLETON — Falls Park, the jewel of the Town of Pendleton, could be a much busier place in future days, if Brandon Schnepp has his way.
Schnepp recently was hired as Falls Park activities director and has big plans to use the facilities and the resources of the park.
“The park and the property that we have there provides endless opportunities for what can be done,” Schnepp said. “A lot of times, the focus is on athletic events, but I want everybody who has an interest to be in the park to have something that is worth coming to and being a part of.”
Schnepp is a 2012 graduate of Pendleton Heights High School and a 2016 graduate of Anderson University. While at AU, he worked in a similar capacity, organizing a variety of events, and feels that experience will aid him in satisfying his vision for Falls Park.
“I think what was great was that we did stuff that was interesting to everybody,” Schnepp said. “It wasn’t just athletic events. I met a lot of people that I wouldn’t normally have met through doing that job. We put on all the campus events for groups ranging from 20 people to 400 to 500 people. We did sports, trivia nights, musical events — stuff that encompassed everyone’s interests.”
Parks Superintendent Ron Barnhart hired Schnepp in mid-April and said this is a position that requires a full-time effort. After several attempts at having someone do the job on a part-time basis, usually during the summers, Barnhart said it was time to make the position a year-round responsibility.
“What we learned — it takes so much time to organize and make those contacts that a part-time person can’t seem to get it all done,” Barnhart said.
One of the first events planned by Schnepp is an athletic event — a softball tournament scheduled for Memorial Day weekend, which could lead to similar events in the future.
“If that goes OK, we’ll try to do one the Fourth of July weekend,” he said. “A standard, double-elimination slow pitch tournament. That’s the type of thing the community gets on board with, so we’ll see how that goes.”
Barnhart said one of the goals going forward for Falls Park is an increase in revenue.
“The park doesn’t receive as much tax revenue as it used to,” he said. “Now, we’ve got to come up with some creative ways to help supplement what it is going to take to maintain everything.”
Schnepp agreed and said he feels there’s an untapped potential for Falls Park in the future. Making better use of the facilities is one of his chief goals in the future.
“We have so many facilities that are underused,” he said. “How can we constantly use those to our benefit? That’s one of my goals, using what we have more efficiently, often and more effectively. I also want to plan events that become, maybe not tradition, but become a staple in the community.”
Barnhart added that Schnepp’s background and experience make him the right person for the job.
“He did a similar job at the university and was very successful at that,” Barnhart said. “He also used to work for me and already knows the ins and outs of the park and how things work.”
For Schnepp, the opportunity and the challenge of running Falls Park is one he is looking forward to.
“Being born and raised in Pendleton, I am really excited to work at a place that I spent a lot time at growing up,” he said. “I’m more honored — when you think of Pendleton, you think of the park as one of the focal points of the town. So being a part of that is both an honor and exciting.”