Fall Creek Board of Parks and Recreation purchased 38 acres of contiguous land to expand Falls Park near the Sports Complex.

Fall Creek Board of Parks and Recreation expanded Falls Park with the purchase of 38 acres from the heirs of Dr. Robert Begley. Pictured at the closing in Anderson on June 23 are (front row, from left) Brian Begley, son of Robert Begley, and Park Board President Bryan Williams; and (back row) estate attorney Ron Fowler, park attorney Bill Davisson and Park Director Aaron Burris.

By Brady Extin | The Times-Post

PENDLETON — Falls Park, Pendleton’s natural gathering place, is growing to accommodate the town’s growing population with the purchase of 38 acres contiguous to the Pendleton Sports Complex area for future development.
“The public has consistently asked for more green space for recreation, and we’re working hard to provide it,” Pendleton Park Board President Bryan Williams said in a press release. “This property is a key segment in a line of park land from Pendleton’s eastern boundary all the way to downtown.”
In December 2020, Pendleton Town Council denied a request to rezone the land in the newly acquired area for a proposed 145-unit residential development.
“Your discussion here doesn’t convince me that’s the best thing for this property at this time. For me, it’s not,” said then-council President Chet Babb, citing that the town could use that land to expand the park.
“It hooks right into our park, so to me, that could be part of the park. That’s just me,” Babb, who died last month, said in 2020.
“Ideally, I think, the board would like to see this land in the park, since we are somewhat landlocked as we sit now,” Park Director Aaron Burris said back in 2020. “It’s just a matter of funding, for us, whether we can afford to buy the property and then do something with it within a reasonable amount of time. I think the ultimate goal for us would be to have that piece of property.”
Two and a half years later — less than a year after the town rezoned the property for a different residential development that didn’t pan out — the idea to add the land to the park is coming true.
The property, a farm owned by Prairie Creek Partnership, has been sold to the Fall Creek Board of Parks and Recreation by the heirs of the estate of Dr. Robert Begley. The final price — $760,000 — reflects a discount of $240,000 from the appraised value, Burris said.
The deal closed Friday, June 23. Williams said two appraisals came in at “just over $1 million each.”
The purchase was made with bond proceeds, and the balance is being paid on contract for the next three years.
“Land acquisition and development are expensive, but they’re investments that live forever. As a board, our mission is to provide spaces to gather and create life-long memories,” Williams said. “We feel fortunate that the Begley family gave our community a great head start on this purchase with the meaningful discount they offered.”
In 2022, the park board, with the help of South Madison Community Foundation, acquired the ‘Pets and Vets’ building, parking lot and surrounding acreage adjacent to the falls.
“Land acquisition is the top priority in the current park master plan, because it is the first and most essential step in serving more people,” Williams said in the release. “We want to be the reason people live, play and visit Pendleton, and we look forward to working with more community stewards on land acquisitions and development to meet our growing community needs.”
Before the recent land purchase, Falls Park included more than 284 acres of land, offering the falls on Fall Creek, two ponds, creeks, green spaces, and a trail system. In addition to its natural beauty, Falls Park provides a variety of social and recreational avenues for all ages.
Park amenities include playgrounds, an outdoor fitness center, a dog park, soccer fields, open shelter houses, rental facilities, and a gazebo used for musical concerts and weddings. There’s also the Olympic-size Alvin D. Brown Memorial Swimming Pool, the sports complex that plays host to several sporting events/programs year ’round on its six ball diamonds and rugby/football fields, as well as the 18-hole Fall Creek Golf Club featuring Sahm’s Smokehouse.
Furthermore, located on the grounds of Falls Park are the Pendleton Historical Museum and a YMCA of Madison County location.
“We have been outgrowing the green space that we have, and that parcel of land just checks a lot of boxes for us,” Burris said.
He also said that, while they don’t have any set-in-stone plans for the land yet, the new land will be used to add even more amenities to the park.
“We don’t really have a set purpose for the land yet, but I would say that multi-use fields, such as soccer, football, rugby and lacrosse are probably going to be part of the use for that land,” Burris said. “The priority was just to get the land under our control, so when the time does come to develop new amenities, we will have the land available, and where it’s at it just flows well with the rest of the park.”

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story did not include the fact that the town approved a request to rezone the property in 2022 for a proposed single-family residential development that didn’t end up happening.