Amarillo proclaims Wonderland Park's 75th; parks department reports 21,400 at Red, White & Boom

The Amarillo City Council on July 28 recognized Wonderland Park’s 75th anniversary and heard a recap of the city’s Red, White & Boom events.

Councilman Tips presented a proclamation honoring Wonderland Park and encouraged residents to attend anniversary events July 31–Aug. 2. Steve, a park representative, thanked council and said, “This park is something very, very special. I’ve been here six months and I’ve seen how many memories it creates.”

Becky Dreyer, assistant director of Amarillo Parks and Recreation, told council the celebration began July 3 with a glow run (about 900 attendees) and that the July 4 main event drew roughly 21,400 people with an average dwell time of 129 minutes. The event operated on a roughly $130,000 budget and relied on many partners and volunteers; transit provided free shuttles that carried about 1,300 people. Dreyer said vendors reported very strong sales and several sold out.

Dreyer acknowledged operational challenges: weather delayed the drone/fireworks portion of the show, and staff plan to improve public communication about such delays next year. She said staff will propose a supplemental budget request to restore carnival rides and expand the kids zone in future years. Council members praised staff for turnout and asked staff to bring the supplemental request back for consideration.

Council did not take immediate action beyond the recognition; Parks staff will return with any budget requests to be considered in the normal supplemental/budget process.