Creamery’s past lives on in new Norris park

November 11, 2026 by G. Chambers Williams III

More than 100 people turned out at 4:30 p.m. on Monday for the dedication and ribbon-cutting formally opening the new Norris Creamery Park and Greenway, which stretches along the east side of East Norris Road.

The ceremony, which preceded the City Council’s monthly meeting at 6 p.m., featured special recognition of the descendants of Robert G. “Buddy” Crossno, who with partners operated a dairy farm and creamery on the property after taking it over from the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1937.

Until it closed in 1972, the creamery provided milk for the surrounding communities – including for the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge.

Monday’s event, coordinated by the Norris Recreation Commission and led by Norris City Manager Bailey Whited, also honored Norris resident Spencer Boardman, who spent countless hours – and some of his own money – developing the park.

It’s built on a 2.5-acre plot that includes the majority of a new sidewalk built in 2021 to stretch from Dairy Pond Road to Andersonville Highway.

The land was donated to the city in two parcels, one from Jerry and Ellalyn Crossno, and the other from Norris Mayor Chris Mitchell and his wife, Pam Turner.

Jerry Crossno is the son of former Norris Creamery owner and operator R.G. Crossno.

Mitchell and Turner purchased their portion of the land from one of the R.G. Crossno heirs expressly for the purpose of donating it to the city for the park.

The Norris City Council appropriated $10,000 specifically for the park, but Boardman and his wife, May, donated $3,500 to cover the cost of running a city water line to the park.

The Boardmans, who have long been involved in volunteer work for various Norris community projects and upgrades, told the council in October 2024 that they were making the donation because there was no money in the city budget to pay for the water line.

Later, at the City Council meeting, Whited distributed a proclamation signed by Mayor Mitchell recognizing the Crossno family’s contributions to the city over the decades since they took over the creamery, and gave tribute to Spencer Boardman for his work developing the park.

The council appropriated the $10,000 in taxpayer funds for initial development of the park, which already has the new paved sidewalk running through it that was paid for under a different project.

The East Norris sidewalk project, with a construction cost of $317,195, added 2,500 feet to the walkway.

Called the East Norris Sidewalk and Pedestrian Signal Improvements project, 80 percent of the design and construction costs were covered by a grant from the Tennessee Department of Transportation, while the city paid a 20 percent share, which totaled $94,327.

The well-manicured concrete sidewalk meanders through the new park like switchbacks on a mountain highway.

The city’s contribution to the park was to pay for trees and benches and a sign to commemorate the former creamery.

This was the last major link in the Norris sidewalk network, allowing people to stroll on dedicated pedestrian walkways through the entire city from Norris Freeway to Andersonville Highway.

At Andersonville Highway, it loops into the parking area of the shopping center, and there are now pedestrian walk signals at the traffic light where East Norris Road ends at Andersonville Highway.