Two key public amenities in Hillsborough are back open to visitors after sustaining damage from floodwaters one month ago.
The Orange County government shared an alert Friday afternoon saying River Park in downtown Hillsborough was officially reopened for the first time since July 7, when floodwaters from Tropical Depression Chantal were receding. The park, located at 140 East Margaret Lane, is a grassy field that sits along the Eno River and regularly floods — but the sheer amount of rain over central North Carolina from the storm led the river to surge and reach 24 feet overnight on July 6.
Orange County said visitors to River Park are urged to watch their step as some areas may still be slick. Additionally, it warned that the replica Occaneechi Village built alongside the Eno River will remain closed “due to additional needed repairs.” The David E. Price Pavilion, another key amenity in the park, has been open since mid-July.
Also on Friday, the Town of Hillsborough shared that part of its Riverwalk greenway — which goes through River Park — is open again around downtown. Since the floods, the local government’s Public Works crews removed trees, debris and mud that blocked sections of the trail as well as replace sections of boardwalk, decking and railings. That work led to the mile-long stretch of Calvin Street and Cameron Street being ready to welcome back Riverwalk users.
“Parts of the Riverwalk trail look really different than they used to,” Hillsborough Public Space and Sustainability Manager Stephanie Trueblood said in a video shared by the town. “Over the course of the next couple of months, we will be continuing to do some cleanup in these sections, but some of the debris will be left [to create] natural habitat.”
Other work on the greenway continues as well, with the sections from Calvin Street to Eno Mountain Road and Cameron Street to the Occoneechee Speedway still closed for repair work. Trueblood also stressed that Gold Park still has significant flood damage, so the amenity — and the part of Riverwalk accessing it — ought to be avoided.
“Gold Park remains closed at this time while we make repairs to the restroom building, picnic shelters, playground and the dog park,” she said. “So, please stay out of Gold Park — let us get the repairs made, we’ll open it as soon as possible.”
The repairs to Gold Park’s facility are expected to be fairly costly, adding to the Town of Hillsborough’s other costs sustained from damage to its wastewater treatment plant during the intense flooding. The local government, which operates as the community’s water and sewer provider, was under a boil water notice and subsequent conservation call for roughly five days following the storm — which was estimated to result in the worst flooding for Hillsborough since the town built and starting using its reservoir in 2000.
The reopening of River Park and the Riverwalk coincide with an event aiming to drive foot traffic to Orange County’s downtowns: the Uproar Public Art Festival. Sixty pieces of public art are on display through Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Hillsborough, with some originally planned to be installed at River Park before the flooding. As a result, those pieces were moved elsewhere in downtown Hillsborough.
Featured photo by the Chapel Hill Media Group.
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