A project years in the making officially opened Friday as Cambridge City leaders, volunteers and residents dedicated the new Creitz Park Pavilion, a nearly $1 million investment intended to expand community events and strengthen downtown activity.
The festivities brought together residents and community leaders from across the county to celebrate the new gathering spot, and the collaboration and vision it represents.
Cousins Karsyn and Colton Judy, 9 and 6, and Scarlett and Weston Black, 4 and 3, seemed to enjoy resting on a blanket, eating cotton candy and listening to music during the Friday, May 8, event. Their moms, Bryanna Judy of Pershing and Samantha Black of Dunreith, are glad to see the new permanent stage for performances, picnic tables and other amenities.
Leading up to the 2025 construction, Cambridge City Main Street had offered free outdoor concerts on that site with temporary stages that drew audiences from around the county and beyond.
Judy said her family had enjoyed concerts in the undeveloped space, but she likes the new open concept pavilion where kids can spread out on blankets and adults can sit in chairs.
Judy also appreciates living in a trusting community where she comfortably let her kids visit nearby friends during the event.
Those helping with the dedication, including Jeannie Watson, a longtime volunteer for Cambridge City Main Street and Cambridge City Area Chamber of Commerce boards, were relieved the speakers could beat the lightly falling raindrops arriving as local bands took shifts on stage.
“It makes you feel so proud,” Watson said about the collaborations. “So many people are willing to help – sponsors, donors, people willing to volunteer – it makes my heart swell. We have a lot to be proud of.”
Behind-the-scenes planning and fundraising for what became the $962,000 pavilion began when Cambridge City completed a comprehensive plan in 2020 that included a goal for an activity area behind the fire station at 127 W. Maple St. that’s adjacent to Creitz Park.
The town was able to leverage $150,000 of its Hoosier Enduring Legacy Program funds with Wayne County contributions and support from Indiana Office of Rural and Community Affairs, Sugar Creek and Wayne County Convention and Tourism Bureau. Wayne County Foundation and its Forward Wayne County staff helped secure Lilly Endowment funds to complete the project.
Cambridge City’s council president Jim McLane noted many contributions of talent from Western Wayne resident Cecil Penland, a principal and landscape architect for Indianapolis-based Rundell Ernstberger Associates, along with the town’s park committee, county leaders and more.
“This is a testament as you look around to the things we can do when we work together,” said Wayne County Commissioner Jeff Plasterer.
Troy Lewis, representing Western Wayne Alliance, which is the newly combined town chamber and Main Street organizations, said he didn’t know people when he moved to town nine years ago, but a venue like Creitz Park Pavilion will help people connect.
Acacia St. John, program director for Forward Wayne County and a Western Wayne resident, said the project didn’t happen overnight, but the community deserved an outdoor space to bring people together.
“This is not just a celebration of a pavilion, it’s a celebration of what happens when a community believes in itself,” St. John said.
A version of this article will appear in the May 13 2026 print edition of the Western Wayne News.