A Memorial Day to remember
The grand opening of McEuen Park next weekend will be the culmination of 17 years of planning, funding and dreaming on the part of many people. As with any great improvements, community projects of this magnitude don't happen without a very large dose of each.
When the city formed its urban renewal agency under Mayor Al Hassell in 1997, a big part of the plan was dedicated to providing better public places in what is now the Lake District. The oldest part of the city, it is a large area stretching north from downtown to beyond I-90, including a big chunk of midtown, and had suffered from economic decline and deteriorating infrastructure. Along with the reconstruction of Sherman, Lakeside and Northwest Boulevard, at the forefront of the discussion was providing funding for vast upgrades to McEuen Field. It is sometimes hard to remember just what it was like in those days: a place dominated by cracking asphalt and fenced-in ball fields. The seawall beside the boat launch had collapsed in recent years from cranes lifting big boats onto the lake, and the tennis courts were unplayable. City leaders didn't see how the downtown area could ever return to its vibrant past with its major lakeside asset in such disrepair.
Fast forward 17 years:
After city leaders funded the Library, Kroc Center and Higher Education Corridor, the patience with which the park awaited its turn is being rewarded. Combined with vastly needed improvements to Front Avenue, McEuen Park now boasts several acres of new green space, playgrounds and a splash pad that will be sure to attract every kid in town. A short Frisbee throw away, there are new tennis and basketball courts and a privately funded dog park. Handy public facilities are available, too, including a pavilion to provide respite on hot days. Near the grassy amphitheater, at the west entrance to the incredible Tubbs Hill is the new Harbor House. Welcoming guests from land and water, the Harbor House provides food and beverages on its lakeside deck perched above the boat docks. Close by is the Veterans Plaza linking the park to the promenade along Front Avenue, with hundreds of parking spaces tucked underneath.
On Memorial Day weekend, city leaders will finally unveil the beauty of their newest contribution to their community, and to the many visitors who will flock there.
Welcome at long last to the new, incomparable McEuen Park.
John Austin is a former finance director at Kootenai County and for the city of Coeur d'Alene.