Collierville Park Dedication Offers Historic Setting for Development

– The Shelby Sun Times –

The historic town of Collierville now boasts a new park – McGinnis Park.

Located in The Neighborhood at Schilling Farms, adjacent to the new Schilling Farms Middle School, McGinnis Park was dedicated in a recent ceremony. The historic marker signifying the site as McGinnis park was erected in 1998 by Boyle Investment Company and Descendants of Early Settlers of Shelby County.

In addition to Boyle and Schilling representatives, special guests at the ceremony and unveiling of the historic marker were Shelby County Mayor Jim Rout and Collierville Mayor Herman W. Cox. McGinnis Park is named after Wiley Washington McGinnis, the first to landscape Collierville Square, and the grandfather of Mayor Cox and his sister, Carolyn Cox Hays. The Reverend James W. Cubine, of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Collierville, delivered the invocation.

The park and streets within Schilling Farms are named for people who contributed to the rich heritage of Collierville. Descendants of these individuals were among an estimated 200 invited to the ceremony. Mrs. Clarene Russell, Collierville historian, worked with Boyle to research appropriate names for streets like Hoyahka Street, named for the Indian who received the land, now Schilling Farms, from the Chickasaw Land Treaty and Josiah DeLoach, a major landholder.

Schilling Farms is reminiscent of a bygone era, with strict building codes and attention to the smallest details. The development maintains the small-town atmosphere and architectural heritage of Collierville. The extensive multi-use development includes significant retail space, 1.5 million square feet of office space, and 90 acres of distribution space, as well as a variety of residential neighborhoods served by Schilling Farms Middle School. Additionally, Schilling Farms has also donated land for the new Collierville YMCA, currently under construction.

“The residential area and Schilling Farms Middle School are centered around the main axis of Schilling Farms Boulevard, with the park at the center,” said Russell Bloodworth, Executive Vice President of Boyle.

The school and park are positioned within the heart of The Neighborhood at Schilling Farms, site of the October 1999 VESTA Home Show. The tree-lined boulevard presents an impressive entrance to The Neighborhood at Schilling Farms and park area where sidewalks and benches offer a pedestrian-friendly environment.

The Madison, an apartment complex; a residential subdivision of attached townhomes; Kid Tech Child Care Center; a 16-acre church site; and a 3.5 acre hotel site are also planned.