"Nature and beauty at the heart of Cashiers."
As you look into the park, you can see the majestic shape of Whiteside Mountain and Devils Courthouse. As you drive thru the entrance a great view of Terrapin Mountain stands straight ahead. The parks gardens, with an emphasis on native plants and preservation of our area's natural beauty, vary from wildflower beds, grassy fields, wetlands, and wooded areas while creating rooms with specific interests, like the native azalea garden and a fern room. The green space and flowerbeds are a visual reflection that the community cares about what Cashiers has to offer.
The Village Green began in 1992, when a motel chain purchased two acres of land at the southwest corner of the crossroads. Dismayed at the prospect of losing their village atmosphere, three residents - Al Balestiere, Elizabeth Davenport and John Lupton - purchased the land from the motel firm and gave it to a nonprofit charitable corporation for the Cashiers community.
The first expansion took place in 1996, with a gift of an adjacent 6 1/2 acre parcel from William W. Pulley in honor of his granddaughter, Kara Leigh Pulley.
At the same time, the Village Green conducted a major fundraising drive. Through the efforts and generosity of about 600 residents, more than $550,000 was raised to further purchase an additional 3 1/2 acres adjoining the Pulley tract.
An 8,000 square foot playground, The Village Play, was designed by local children and built by volunteers over a five-day period. It is located in the Kara Leigh Pulley Park.
The Village Green has also added a boardwalk that ambles through wetlands in the park. The wetlands are home to many species of birds and other wildlife.
The donation of sculpture opens the door to an untapped potential of The Village Green. The benefactors recognize the natural beauty of the park and the wetlands, as well as the emphasis on our native plants. They felt this was a perfect venue for sculpture. By being a public park, accessibility to sculpture will touch, move and inspire many people of all ages.
Use and enjoyment of The Village Green is free year-round. The maintenance and up-keep costs are more than $65,000 each year and untold hours of volunteer time and effort. The Joy Garden Tour sponsors a much-anticipated one-day event every other year featuring stunning local gardens. The funds raised at this event support the majority of the Green's expenditures and ongoing improvements. This group of dedicated volunteers puts on a gala patron party the night before the tour with a must-get-there-early garden shop. On the day of the tour, there are nationally recognized speakers, and the shop remains open all day.
Today, the now-12 1/2-acre park thrives, featuring walking paths, a nationally judged dahlia garden, native landscaping, low stone walls, boardwalks over wetlands, a children's playground, rustic pavilions with picnic tables and grills, a woodlands trail, and sculptures by internationally renowned sculptors.
Also The Village Green co-sponsors with the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust's the "Village Nature Series." This includes five speakers, one every last Wednesday of the month starting in June.
The park is available to residents and visitors alike. It has been used for hundreds of community events, private parties and weddings.
The Village Green board is developing a long-range plan to continue improving the park. The focus is on the gardens, green spaces, play space and walkways. Use of native species is high on the agenda. Educational gardens encompassing plants, trees, birds and insects common in this area are in the plans.
The Village Green has been recognized and complimented by notable organizations, conservationists and landscape designers - such as The Nature Conservancy, the Highlands Land Trust and The Biological Station - on its preservation of the natural beauty of Cashiers.
Take a walk through The Village Green to see what has been accomplished. And think about getting involved as the Village Green board moves forward with its long-range plans.
For more information, write to The Village Green, P.O. Box 2201, Cashiers, N.C. 28717, or call (828) 743-3434.