By Larry Tucker
The Mineola Civic Center is one of the busiest meeting locations in Wood County. It is open year-round where everything from family and community functions are held, as well as civic and charitable events, elections, weddings, and graduations.
The Mineola facility was originally incorporated by community leaders to provide a gathering place for Mineola and Wood County. The civic center is a nonprofit organization supported by corporations, individuals, special events, and RV rental income.
The center is not owned by the city and has never been supported by state, county, or city funds. It was founded in the spirit of philanthropy by a local grant-making foundation established by Harry Meredith, a former Mineola businessman and mayor. The Meredith Foundation continues to give an annual gift to support operation costs at the facility.
An Important Mission
The mission of the center states “Mineola Civic Center is a gathering place for citizens of Mineola and Wood County, combining quality facilities and outdoor beauty, to create memorable experiences and civic pride.” The vision of the facility is to be the premier event and recreation venue in Wood County.
One of the top activities involves tourism, and the center has an extensive RV Park with 30 and 50-amp hook-ups with concrete pads. “The RV Park is a big source of income for us. In March, the RV rallies begin,” Executive Director Lisa Bright informed. “One of the largest rallies ever here was in 2018. We had 160 RV units here for a SMART RV rally.”
There were 15 RV rallies on the books for 2024. The Texas State Good Sam Rally drew 75 RV units back in April, while GMC Motorhomes, Inc. drew 110 RVs to the civic center. Coming in September, Bright is expecting 100 NOMAD Mission volunteers to be at the site for 10 days. And in December, a unique group of RV patrons from Girl Campers will bring their all-female RV troops to the grounds.
Impressive Amenities
The installation of fiber optic cable provides high-speed Wi-Fi for the public’s use. Other amenities include a playground, picnic areas, a splash park, sidewalks for walking, and tennis courts for tennis and pickleball.
The 22,000-square-foot Mineola center is anchored by Meredith Hall. The Live Oak Ballroom is a large hall seating approximately 350-400 people. Other rooms in various sizes are also available for meetings, vendors, and breakout sessions. The outer rooms at the Mineola center are named for trees found in East Texas. Those other rooms are named Magnolia, Pecan, and Pine.
There is an outdoor pavilion area with restrooms with showers for RV clients. The pavilion has an extensive playground and picnic facilities. A large splash park has become a popular destination in the summer months. There is a snack bar serving hot dogs, snow cones, and cold drinks. The splash park is open seven days a week during the summer heat.
Catering Is Available, Too
A unique offering by the center is food service which is led by Chef Tyler Brown of Fusion in the Woods. From elegant weddings to company and civic group meetings, Brown will create a menu to fit each situation.
“We had an opportunity in 2002 to sublet the kitchen at the civic center and were able to take over the contract fully in January of 2023,” Brown said. “We have catered all kinds of events there from Kiwanis, Rotary, and other civic groups weekly, and also the RV groups that come through, as well as the school district. We have served from a private dinner for two to serving 490 people at once.”
Current Wood County judge and former Mineola mayor Kevin White grew up in the area and is a former board member at the Mineola Civic Center. “During my time as mayor and on the civic center board, we began a lot of projects to improve the civic center. I am glad to see those things continuing because they benefit all the people of Wood County.”
Pilot Club and Meredith Foundation Played Key Roles
KMOO radio station founder and active Kiwanian Sam Curry was there from the beginning. “I was there in the beginning when I was on the first board as we organized things. Back then, the Pilot Club came to me and asked if I would get some legwork done on raising interest locally in building a center. People gave a $500 donation to get things started off. This was before the Meredith Foundation got into the process,” Curry noted. “We had no idea it would look like it does today. It is now a place where we can have almost any event in town which brings people to Mineola. It has brought economic success for the city over the years. The RV folks come to town and spend money. They end up shopping and eating out in Wood County.”
Executive Director Bright added “Mineola Civic Center is a wonderful place for the citizens of Mineola and Wood County. We want everybody to enjoy themselves and know we are here to take care of things when they are out here. We have so many people come here every day and every year. We have completely redone two tennis courts for pickleball. There is rarely a day that goes by when we don’t have something going on here at the Mineola Civic Center.”
For information about activities or any of the various rentals at the Mineola Civic Center, contact Lisa Bright at 903-569-6115. The facility is located at 1150 North Newsom Street in Mineola.