Town Lake Park Minor Enhancements

Town Lake Park is a great little park, offering swings, monkey bars, pond, soccer field, a picnic shelter with grills, and many shady trails for a respite from this summer heat. I've noticed, however, that while a lot of people visit the parts of the park near the parking lot, far fewer seem to explore the trails. Nothing wrong with that; there's wifi near the lot and folks like to feed the geese or use the picnic shelter. And a few recent park improvements will make the parking lot area even more enjoyable. But I hope they will also encourage people to explore the trails and access the more hidden areas of the park.

Here's what's been done: Both parking lots have received tree work to raise the tree canopy and make the area feel safer and more open. Low spots and potholes in the parking lot have been filled in, and poison ivy has been attacked aggressively. The chips from the tree work were retained for future projects.

The soccer field has been aerated and the low areas filled with topsoil, while compost has been spread throughout and the bare spots reseeded. All of this should improve play for the soccer leagues and for the individuals who make use of the field.

But perhaps the most noticeable improvements have been to the trailheads. We've cleared out lots of poison ivy, honeysuckle, and elaeagnus, and coved the cleared areas with recycled leaf mulch which our public works crews collect from around town every fall. In addition, some attractive, but also deer, heat, and abuse tolerant plants have been installed at the entranceways, drawing eyes toward the trail and inviting people to explore further. My daughter and I walked around this weekend and had a great time.

Hwy 902 trailhead: Before clearing

Hwy 902 trailhead: After clearing and crusher run trail surfacing

Hwy 902 trailhead: After plantings

Diane Street Parking Lot: After Improvements left of trail

Diane Street Parking Lot: After Improvements right of trail