It’s a new year and a new you, and COVID-19 concerns don’t have to put a damper on the high hopes you have to get healthy and get active.

Whether your plan is to pick up a new exercise routine, start running or just spend more time outside with friends and family, our park systems may be the answer you’re looking for and a means of making those New Year’s goals a reality.

With more than 100 acres of possibilities, the Monett City Park is home to year-round activities that are sure to keep a body active and a mind healthy. If there’s a blanket of fresh snow on the ground, its rolling hills beckon you to break out the sleds. When the spring sun starts to shine, a mile of trails with built-in exercise stations begin to call. And when the summer sun is beating down, a relaxing game of disk golf under the tall shade trees might just be the best way to spend the day.

And, thanks to the sprawling grounds, all these activities can accommodate social distancing and lower the risk exposure to COVID-19 while also getting your blood pumping and fresh air flowing.

Monett’s South Park, located at the intersection of Highway 37 and Highway 60, is 65 acres of green space designed for play. It is home to a stocked fishing pond for disabled anglers and children 15 and under, one mile of walking, jogging and biking trails, four soccer fields, four tennis courts, a basketball court and a playground.

So if you’re looking for a little solitude and a chance to stretch your legs, or if you want the competition of a pickup basketball or tennis game. This is the place to go.

North Park is a 35-acre park with opportunities for all ages. Features include seven baseball/softball diamonds, tennis and pickleball courts, a basketball court, a skate park and a playground.



All these opportunities of healthy activity are the culmination of years of work on the part of a community partnership between the City of Monett and Healthy Schools-Healthy Communities.

Through the partnership, the community has been able to re-think and revamp a number of resources at the park, including upgrading the run/walk trail and exercise equipment and the 18-hold disk golf course, all of which are getting a lot of attention since COVID lockdowns began in early 2020.

“Since March 2020, when a lot of businesses closed, we took some precautions as far as the play equipment at the park," Monett City Administrator Dennis Pyle said. “Some equipment wasn’t available, but in May we re-opened and we’ve seen a big increase in usage at the park.

Back in March, April and May, it was really the only way people could get out, exercise and recreate.”

Shawn Hayden, the co-founder and chief executive officer of Missouri Southwest Initiative to Change Health, an organization that took over after the Healthy Schools-Healthy Communities Initiative ran its course, said people have a unique opportunity to begin or to continue living a healthy lifestyle, free of charge, despite COVID-related restrictions many are facing.

“There are four or five workout stations on the trail for things like pull-ups, dips and stretching,” Shawn said. “It’s kind of nice to do whatever body-weight exercises there while you’re outside.

“I know that most gym facilities are taking all the necessary precautions, but I would personally much rather workout outside, so that’s a great resource.”

If just being outside and stretching your legs is more your pace, the park’s disk golf course is a must as it offers 18 holes spread across the 65 acres of south park.

“It’s a very, very popular addition to the park, and people are using it all the time,” Shawn said. He added that he’s heard of some local employees playing nine holes during their lunch breaks, and even a league expressing an interest in hosting a tournament here.

Another newer feature that has found an eager audience among the older generation is the addition of pickle ball courts. As pickleball has gained so much traction, thanks to its low-impact, high-energy style of play, the city has resurfaced and re-striped two of the park’s tennis courts to create four pickleball courts.

Pickleball is similar to tennis, with a few elements from badminton and table tennis thrown in. The two- to four-player game is played on a court similar to a tennis court, but with a ball similar to a whiffle ball.

“It’s been getting really popular, especially with older people,” Dennis said. “I think it’s a lot easier on the joints, but you still get the exercise and movement like tennis.”

And for those who want to stay a little closer to home, but still want to get outside, Dennis said the city is home to 10-plus miles of paved walking paths throughout the city. The Greenway Trails system, he explained, is a safe surface that can take walkers and joggers through much of Monett.

So even though the gym life may not be for everyone in a post-COVID world, we are still lucky to have a huge array of activities and opportunities to keep us healthy and moving heading into 2021 and beyond at a cost that is extremely affordable.

Join the April "Dog Jog" to raise funds for the new dog park in Monett

A lot of our four-legged fur babies are not lucky enough to have a 10 acre farm to run on. We have farmers and city people, and we have farm dogs and city dogs and those city dogs need their exercise as well as people do. People who want a place for their pups to play outside in public have an exciting opportunity to make that happen this year.

Monett Main Street has developed a plan and is moving forward to give our city fur babies a place to exercise, run and animal socialize (probably not six feet apart) with a dog park in downtown Monett. Getting out and about for people and their furry family members on a beautiful green grassy setting.

This is something that bigger cities have had for quite sometime to accommodate those that wanted a dog but lived in apartments. Of course owners and the fur babies have to be responsible and will have rules to follow, but the end result will be worth it to give the dogs an area to play, maybe socialize a bit and learn a few manners.

The plan to build a dog park will compliment the downtown area and bring more spaces to Monett’s social hub. Once constructed adjacent to the downtown park and events pavilion, between Fifth and Sixth streets, local pups will have a place all their own with a doggie playgrounds, doggie drinking fountains and even a paw-friendly walking path.

Help Monett Main Street meet their goal for the new dog park. Join the "Dog Jog" this April.

Fundraising efforts have included some individual donations, totaling approximately $25,000, which included a sizable donation from All About Pets and Monett Veterinary Hospital. To break ground on the the one- acre pooch park and recreation area the group needs to raise $75,000. Some upcoming plans are underway for some efforts to raise some doggy dough such as a 5K dog jog this April. All of the proceeds from the “Dog Jog” will go towards the construction cost. The minds behind the fundraising effort have received a number of donations to give away as prizes for the jog.

Suggestions have been rolling in on how to supplement the event with more creative canine activities. One idea being considered is a beautiful or ugly pet contest.

Monett City Administrator Dennis Pyle said the plan is to see pups playing in the park by late 2021 or early 2022.

The dog park has been designed by architect Richard Werner and will feature two separate areas, one for larger dogs and one for smaller breeds. Dennis also said a shade structure that will house doggie drinking fountains and taller ones for their two-legged friends, is being designed to match the Downtown park pavilion next door.

“The pavilion will be a miniature one compared to the Jerry Hall Memorial Pavilion,” Monett Main Street Board member Thad Hood said.

In addition to green space for the dogs to run and play, the park will also have specially designed canine play features.

And because concrete and asphalt can be tough on puppy paws, the dog park will also include a special walking path, donated by HHR Construction, LLC.

The paths were originally incorporated into the design of the park, but, due to budget constraints, were being considered for removal. Thad said he decided to donate the paths to ensure they could be included for the pups.

And to keep the park clean, doggie waste stations with trash cans and baggies have also been incorporated into the design. Thad said community members will be responsible for cleaning up after themselves and their pets.

To help make the Monett Dog Park a reality, everyone is invited to come out to April’s dog jog, or to simply donate to help reach the $75,000 goal.

To make a donation, contact Hood at 417-737-9461 or Pyle at 417-235-3355, Ext. 2401.

Checks should be payable to Monett Main Street/Dog Park fund and may be mailed to Monett Main Street, Attn: Dennis Pyle, 217 5th St. Monett, MO 65708. Monett Main Street is a 501(C)3 nonprofit organization and donations are tax deductible.