Local News
Vidor park named after late mayor
VIDOR — Although Mayor Joe Hopkins may be gone, city council made sure he will not be forgotten.
Council members unanimously agreed during Thursday’s council meeting to name the newly constructed park on Sparrow Lane in honor of the recently deceased community leader. Joe Hopkins Memorial Park could open to the public by the end of August.
“This was a project which was really near and dear to his heart,” said Ricky Jorgensen, Vidor city manager. “Council members thought it would be fitting to name it after him.”
Hopkins died June 11 at Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont after being admitted earlier that day and undergoing an emergency operation.
Hopkins, 64, was serving in his fifth term after being re-elected as mayor in May 2007. He is the longest serving mayor in Vidor history.
Hopkins spearheaded the charge to build the soon-to-be-opened park on what was once a landfill in Rose City.
Although the park will not have any running water due to restrictions because the site was once a landfill, it will be a highly visited location for families in the Vidor area.
The park will include two soccer fields, a pavilion, a birdwatching deck, playground equipment and a kayak launching area when water levels allow. A walking track will also encircle the park, which should cover more than a dozen acres.
The landfill, which was only open a short time, closed in the early 1970s. It has been approximately five years since the section of land was purchased for this park until now.
“The opening of the park is still kind of flexible, but we think it should be ready by late August,” Jorgensen said. “This will be a place that everyone can enjoy and it will be great to honor Mayor Hopkins like that.”
Reach this reporter at 409-883-3571, Ext. 2619 or tmann@orangeleader.com
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