The visitor’s center at Globe’s Round Mountain Hiking Park already bore the name of a man key to the park’s creation. Now, after a unanimous vote by City Council last week, the whole place – from West Trail to Box Canyon Trail – will stand as a tribute to that trailblazer.
Before turning to budget and capital improvement plan discussions at their June 11 meeting, Council approved a resolution renaming it Stanley M. Gibson Round Mountain Park.
It was May 13, 1997 when the visitor’s center was dedicated to Gibson, a five-term Globe mayor, four-term vice mayor and 16-term city councilman.
Last week’s Council agenda described Round Mountain Park as Gibson’s “labor of love,” adding: “He worked tirelessly during the 1990s to obtain all the necessary approvals and funding . . . Memories of Stan walking the trails are sure to be in everyone’s minds.”
The approved resolution said in part that “development of the park took the better part of 10 years, with trail building, construction of visitor center/restrooms, ramadas and finally bringing in electricity for the visitor center and parking lot security.”
Gibson, who was at the meeting, said that, on becoming chair of the City Planning & Zoning Commission, one of the things he brought up was development of a hiking park.
“I’m very proud of what’s happened up there,” Gibson said. “This was an effort of many, many people.” One of those people, he added, was former City Councilman Luis Aguirre, who was involved in designing and building the visitor’s center, pond, ramadas and the plaque at the summit of Round Mountain.
“I can’t take credit for everything, but I was probably the thought behind it,” Gibson said.
