Nashville, TN -- Metro Nashville Parks and Recreation is joining communities across the country to commemorate July as National Park and Recreation Month, celebrating our city’s parks and the professionals who staff them, improving the lives of tens of millions of people across the country.
This year’s theme, “The Power Of,” spotlights the many ways parks help strengthen communities and individual well-being through:
- The Power of Connection: Parks are where relationships grow, cultures meet and communities bond.
- The Power of Play: From playgrounds to programs to youth sports, play fuels creativity, joy and lifelong learning.
- The Power of Community: Public spaces offer room for everyone to gather, celebrate and heal.
- The Power of Nature: Nature restores and inspires us, and parks ensure everyone can access its benefits.
- The Power of Belonging: Welcoming parks and programs make every person feel valued.
- The Power of Well-Being: Parks and recreation advances health, resilience and shared community benefits.
Mayor Freddie O’Connell said, “This Parks and Recreation Month comes as we’re preparing to open a new park in a part of South Nashville that’s never had one, are celebrating an extended greenway downtown, are reopening a renovated gym, and releasing a master plan update to ensure our parks grow with our city. Nashville is blessed with great greenways and parks that bring us together, and this month we celebrate that connection that we have with one another and our favorite spaces.”
Attendance numbers prove the power and reach of Metro Parks’ properties and events across Nashville and beyond: In 2025:
- Approximately 800,000 people attended 600 permitted special events in city parks
- Close to 200,000 people participated in Nature Center programs throughout Davidson County
- More than half a million people attended programs in Metro Parks 11 Regional Community Centers
- Close to 1 million people played a round of golf, took a class at the Sportsplex or Centennial Performing Arts Center, or cooled off at Wave Country
“All of us at Metro Parks witness the transformative power of parks and green spaces every single day,” said Metro Parks Director Monique Odom. “We see it on the faces of happy children playing on our playgrounds and sports fields. We see it when groups of friends hit the greenways together, on foot or on bikes. We see it at our Big Band Dances, in our classrooms and community centers, and in our fields and trails. We hope every Nashvillian will join us in celebrating The Power of Parks this July, whether by attending one of our special events, taking a summer art class, or enjoying a hike along one of our trails. The Parks Department truly offers something for everybody, every day of the week, for no or very little money.”
Metro Parks will celebrate Park and Recreation Month 2026 by highlighting a variety of community events, programs and activities throughout the next few weeks, including:
Independence Day Celebrations: Celebrate the nation’s semiquincentennial in a Metro Park! Events and activities take place in parks across the city throughout the day, including:
- The 20th Annual Music City Hot Chicken Festival from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. in East Park
- The Prelude to the Fourth and Let Freedom Sing! events throughout the day July 3-4 in and around Riverfront Park
- A reading by local dignitaries of the Declaration of Independence and the Declaration of Sentiments, written by suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton for the First Women’s Rights Convention in 1848, and a reading by Davidson County Historian Dr. Learotha Williams from the speeches of Frederick Douglass, noon-2 p.m. at the Centennial Park Band Shell.
Grand Opening of Mariposa Park: South Nashville’s new 10-acre park will officially open to the public on July 11. Mayor Freddie O’Connell, District 30 Metro Council member Sandra Sepulveda, District 33 Metro Council member Antoinette Lee, Parks Director Monique Horton Odom, and Celso Thomas Castilho, Director of Vanderbilt University’s Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies, will inaugurate the new park at 10 a.m.
Celebrate Greenways: Metro Parks, Greenways for Nashville, and the Greenways Commission invite all trail and greenway users to come out to enjoy the Stones River Greenway at J. Percy Priest Dam at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 18. This event is designed to help users learn to Share the Trail and will feature important safety tips, the Greenways Challenge, and a few special announcements!
Other events scheduled throughout the month include the Full Moon Pickin’ Party on July 24 at Warner Park Nature Center; Cornelia Airpark Concert Series on July 25 at Cornelia Fort Airpark; weekly Big Band Dances on Saturday evenings at Centennial Park; full moon hikes and sunset “critter-spotting” hikes; Junior Naturalist and Nature Storytime programs; and much more! A full list of all the events taking place in Metro Parks in July and beyond may be found at nashville.gov/departments/parks/events.
The power of parks to improve residents’ lives is clear in Davidson County, where residents have access to nearly 16,000 acres of public greenspace owned by Metro Parks. That encompasses 189 individual parks, 110+ miles of greenways, 158 playgrounds, 12 dog parks, 16 pools and splash pads, seven golf courses, and more than 110 miles of greenways and trails. Community centers provide no-cost summer enrichment programs for more than 3,000 children each year, and an array of programs serves seniors, from line dancing to water aerobics. Amenities such as pickleball courts, tennis courts, and disc golf courses are available throughout the city for residents of all ages.
Social Media: YouTube, Facebook, X
About Metro Parks and Recreation
It is the mission of Metro Parks and Recreation to sustainably and equitably provide everyone in Nashville with an inviting network of parks and greenways that offer health, wellness, and quality of life through recreation, conservation, and community.
About the National Recreation and Park Association
The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) is the leading not-for-profit organization dedicated to building strong, vibrant, and resilient communities through the power of parks and recreation. With more than 60,000 members, NRPA advances this mission by investing in and championing the work of park and recreation professionals and advocates — the catalysts for positive change in service of equity, climate readiness, and overall health and wellbeing. For more information, visit nrpa.org. For digital access to NRPA’s flagship publication, Parks & Recreation, visit parksandrecreation.org.
###
