Final agenda coming soon, but here's a draft:
The evening meeting's special guest speaker will be Jim Coulliard, Director of Marion Parks & Recreation since 2015, Couilliard and his staff manage 2,000 acres of county parks with more than fifty sites that connect Marion County residents and visitors with many choices of outdoor experiences in natural settings . Marion County Park & Recreation also manage competitive playing fields complexes. Sixteen of Marion County's parks offer water related recreational activities. One of those sites is the Marion County KP Hole Park and associated two water craft launches on the west bank of the Rainbow River just down stream from the Rainbow Springs State Park Campground.
In 2025 the KP Hole Park was visited by an estimated 78,000 visitors. The total revenue collected at the KP Hole Park was $1.3 million prior to "expenses such as staffing, operating and law enforcement details on the river". 44,885 people came to paddle canoes, kayaks or SUPs. Over 12,000 visitors came to use the tubes of the park for a float downstream to exit the river at the county managed Blue Run Park at the CR 484 bridge.
The law enforcement detail supervised by Lt. Doug Watts of the MCSO will be present on the river every weekend of the warm weather season to enforce the laws of the Rainbow River including no alcohol use while on the river and no disposable containers to be carried on any water craft, large or small. Jim Couilliard will discuss the efforts by his staff to educate river visitors about the enforced rules of the river necessary to keep a safe environment on the Rainbow River.
