Hopkinsville Parks and Recreation Superintendent Tab Brockman will retire on Sept. 1, city officials said Wednesday in a press release.
Brockman was hired in September 2015, when then-Mayor Carter Hendricks picked him to help prepare for a huge influx of tourists expected for the 2017 solar eclipse. Brockman previously was director of Murray-Calloway County Parks and Recreation.
One of the first Brockman-led changes was the creation of Summer Salute to replace the annual Little River Days festival in downtown Hopkinsville. He was also an advocate for moving the Christmas parade to a nighttime event. He also had a hand in creating the Hoptown Half Marathon and downtown live music events called Sounds at Six.
The Planters Bank-Jennie Stuart Health Sportsplex, a facility managed by Hopkinsville Parks and Recreation, opened during his tenure in 2019.
“It’s been an honor to serve with this amazing team at Parks and Recreation for nearly eight years,” Brockman said in the press release. “The spirit of collaboration in this city and county are what makes so many things possible in Hopkinsville and Christian County.”
Brockman was named the Kentucky Recreation and Parks Society Professional of the Year in 2018 and the Kentucky League of Cities Employee of the Year in 2022. The department was also recognized as the state’s best parks and recreation agency three times during his tenure.
Mayor James R. Knight Jr. said Brockman is the best parks and rec director in Kentucky.
Brockman is the third city department head to announce plans to retire this year. Police Chief Clayton Sumner and Chief Financial Officer Robert Martin both previously said they will leave for retirement in August.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
