BOONE, N.C.—On May 25, a ribbon-cutting ceremony will mark the reopening of banks along the New River located at Appalachian State University’s State Farm Fields.

The event, which will begin at 11 a.m. by the covered bridge at the Town of Boone Greenway, is free and open to the public. Parking will be available in the State Farm Parking Lot, 300 Dale Street.

Appalachian’s State Farm Fields, used by the university’s intramural programs, are on both sides of the river, connected by the covered bridge where the ribbon-cutting will take place.

Over the last few years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Town of Boone have been working to clean the banks of debris and to erect barriers that would prevent further erosion. Called “Watauga Section 206,” the project affected banks between the covered bridge and a second bridge located north.

Appalachian has done much to assist these efforts, said Mike O’Connor, director of the university’s physical plant. The university contributed money to the project. It gave Jeff Pierce, a university project engineer, contract management oversight. It also donated an easement to the project.

As cleanup and repair efforts progressed, Appalachian allowed soil removed from the river’s banks to be reused on the intramural fields – which saved money, since it did not have to be hauled away.

“It was a great joint effort,” O’Connor said.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.

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