By Shannon McFarlin WENK/WTPR News Director
Buchanan, Tenn.—Paris Landing State Park has a new manager who is from just down the road and has a wealth of experience working at nearby state parks.
Tinkle is joining the Paris Landing State Park at a pivotal moment in its history, with the Paris Landing Inn set to be demolished shortly and replaced by a more modern, but smaller, facility.
A native of Holladay, Zach Tinkle is 36 and a graduate of Camden High School and Murray State University.
It was his time at Murray State that led him to his current career in the state parks, he said. “I got a summer job at the Johnsonville State Historic Park and I really enjoyed that. I kept thinking, ‘I can’t believe I’m getting paid to work in a state park and do all these fun things.’”
It was that enthusiasm that led him to pursuing a full-time job there, which lasted for three years. From there, he became a seasonal interpretive ranger at the Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park in Eva, followed by a long stint, from 2007-2015 at the Chickasaw State Park in Henderson.
Most recently, from 2015 to the present, Tinkle was a ranger at the Cedars of Lebanon State Park in Lebanon.
Tinkle was hired as the new park manager at Paris Landing in October to replace long-time parks manager Joan Williams. He said he is still getting the feel of the job and is loving it. “As the park manager, there’s more paperwork involved,” he laughed, “but I hope to be able to get out in the field as much as I can.”
As for the pending demolition of the Paris Landing Inn, Tinkle said state officials have given no timetable for when the exterior walls begin coming down. All of the furniture and other items have been removed from the facility and given to other parks in the state, he said.
State officials earlier had projected the demolition would begin in October. The new Inn is expected to be built by 2020.
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