Proposed park plan assesses needs, hopes

As part of a process meant to establish a five-year maintenance and improvement plan for county parks, facilities director Brian Tomford offered information during the March 3 meeting of the county board about each of 9 spaces owned by the county, summarizing how the public tends to use them, and what repairs or improvements will likely be called for over the next few years.

 

Tomford identified the main focus of the proposed plan to be “developing and improving” rather than expanding the size or number of parks.

 

Putting together a maintenance plan, he told board members, will be useful for establishing budgets and applying for outside sources of funding–including money assigned through state programs as well as grants offered by various agencies. A regular pattern of maintenance, he said, should also reduce the need for “reactive” repairs and simultaneously increase public engagement with the various facilities.

 

His summary began with Courthouse Park, located south of Waseca mostly in Wilton Township. Courthouse is the county’s largest park, more than 170 acres in size. Located on its grounds are cabins, “primitive” campsites, a public restroom with showers, riding and walking trails, a disc golf course, a pavilion and playground. The pavilion is frequently used for weddings and family gatherings; music performances have occurred on the grounds and school or education functions take place there.

 

Possible improvements for Courthouse Park, Tomford suggested, include widening the road leading into the park, developing a second entrance from the south, replacing or improving the playground equipment located there, improving signage and possibly adding a pickleball court. He also suggested the level of usage the park receives might merit constructing an enclosed interpretive center where educational information could be posted and shared and indoor events could take place.

 

Blowers Park is just over 80 acres in size; it is located northeast of Waseca on the line between Woodville and Blooming Grove townships. Tomford listed features there including a pavilion,

 

playground, volleyball court, horseshoe pits, walking trails, a bathroom and access to

waterfowl hunting and fishing. His summary mentioned that a permanent “cornhole” bean bag game is also due to be installed there. 

 

Blowers Park, he suggested, would benefit from a new pavilion with light and electric outlets, the planting of some maple trees, improved playground equipment and a trail that meets Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards.

 

Eustice Park is just over 50 acres in size and spans the Little Cobb River west of Waldorf in Freedom Township. The park currently offers a pavilion, playground, hiking trail, access to wildlife viewing and a bathroom. Among the improvements Tomford suggested are a pavilion–which would require the addition of electricity–upgrades to the playground, a permanent “corn hole” bean bag game, an ADA pathway, and ongoing improvements to the trails.

 

Goose Lake Park is about 50 acres of forested land adjacent to Goose Lake west of Waseca in Woodville Township. The park has a boat launch which allows access to Goose Lake. Tomford commented that the most common uses for the park are walking the trails and viewing wildlife. Hunting is allowed in the park. Under an agreement with an organization named Great River Greening, the woods on the land are part of a five-year “forest improvement” program.

 

Tomford’s suggestions for Goose Lake Park were to improve the road and trails and upgrade the boat launch.

 

Okaman Park is a narrow 11-acre strip of land along the shore of Lake Elysian at the county’s northern edge in Janesville Township. The park currently offers a boat launch and access to the lakeshore, a pavilion, bathroom and some trails for wildlife viewing.

 

The proposed county parks plan suggests adding lighting and power to the pavilion, and installing a family fire pit with an ADA compliant pathway.

 

Loon Lake Island is public land owned by the county. About three-fourths of an acre in size, it is accessible only by non-motorized watercraft. The island has some large, well-established trees which have been threatened in recent years by nesting cormorants; the birds’ droppings are particularly acidic. When the materials seep into the soil, they kill the trees’ roots. The county has received permission from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to continue efforts to control the number of cormorants both by removing what nests can be reached and by eliminating the birds prior to their nesting season.  

 

Tomford noted during his presentation that county staff has devoted time over the past year to clearing buckthorn from the island’s undergrowth. He mentioned he and his staff have looked into the possibility of primitive campsites on the island, but have been informed the island is not eligible for them because it does not have a bathroom. He noted, however, that there are signs members of the public visit the island. His only proposal for improving the island is to continue controlling the birds as long as necessary, and to plant new vegetation .

 

Mittelstaedt Park is about 40 acres in size and is located west of Janesville off County Road 19. Tomford describes it as a “large native grassy area” and summarizes public usage of it as viewing wildlife and hunting.

 

The proposed parks plan suggests the park should simply be maintained in its natural state.

 

Two other properties the plan suggests should be left as they are are Toners Lake and Gekeler parks. Toners Lake includes 11 acres of land and is accessible only because the county has an easement agreement with a private property owner. The county has located a small picnic area there for public use; otherwise the park is used mostly for wildlife viewing and hunting. Tomford reports there are no county maintained facilities at Gekeler Park, which is almost 24 acres in size and is located east of Highway 13 just south of the county recycling center in Otisco Township. He explains the acreage is completely surrounded by privately owned property, and so is not a good candidate for any sort of development at this time.