Little Debbie Park opens to the public
COLLEGEDALE, Tenn. (WDEF) – The city of Collegedale and McKee Foods came together this morning to unveil a new centerpiece of their community.
The Little Debbie Park is the newest attraction in Collegedale.
A project nearly four years in the making, it has been built on 10 acres acquired from Southern Adventist University.
It was a partnership between the city and McKee Foods, whose Little Debbie brand is the park’s namesake.
A group enjoying the Cosmic Brownie sculpture at Little Debbie Park.
The executive vice president of McKee Foods, Rusty McKee, said, “Our family has always enjoyed being outside, and enjoying the beautiful trees, grass, shrubs, etcetera, and there’s probably not a better gift then to come together and make something like this happen for the community.”
Collegedale Mayor Morty Lloyd said, “Collegedale is known throughout the region as a place where families can come and create memories, we’re so thankful that the McKee family can make this possible.”
The park contains multiple pavilions, a playground, and walking trails that connect to other portions of the Collegedale Greenway system.
It also features a sculpture of Little Debbie herself holding a plate of Swiss Rolls.
Local artist Alex Paul Loza was commissioned to create it and presented it to the McKee family this morning.
Loza said, “The inspiration came out from a black and white picture of Little Debbie sampling Swiss Rolls.”
He said that creating the sculpture took some help.
Loza said, “I used my daughter as a model to help me see the other side of the sculpture and also, the picture is only from the waist up, so my daughter helped me pose from the waist down to help me keep the childlike spirit of the sculpture alive.”
There are many homages to Little Debbie production the Little Debbie playground including Cosmic Brownie, Oatmeal Cream Pie, and Christmas Tree Cake sculptures.
There is also a giant hill worth rolling down and a zip line through the playground.
The kids who were there gave their review of the park including Camden Lloyd who said, “It’s a 10 out of 10!”
