Grant Funds Recommended For Three Central Minnesota Parks

(KNSI) – Three county-owned parks in central Minnesota will benefit from $11.4 million in legacy funding if the Legislature approves.

The Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission will ask for Kraemer Lake-Wildwood County Park, near St. Joseph, to get $1,175,846 for a redevelopment project. Officials want to change the entrance into the park, build a parking lot, and develop picnic areas, restrooms, a fishing pier, a playground, a non-motorized boat launch, and paved trail access. The GMRPTC has recommended the entire request, with the county providing $392,948 in matching funds. According to the Stearns County Parks Department, the project could break ground in 2024.

The commission also requests $170,250 for Quarry Park & Nature Preserve in Waite Park. The Parks Department will use the funds to stabilize an eroding bank at a swimming quarry caused by the foot traffic through one of the few ways to get to the high jump at Quarry Two. Approximately 1000 cubic yards of discarded granite blocks will be re-positioned to create a retaining wall to stabilize the bank around the edge of the swimming quarry. The money will also be used to create a safer path to the high jump and an opening for picnic tables and a viewing area. Work could begin in the fall of 2023.

They also recommend $797,555 for the Benton County Great River Park Complex near Rice.

Each year, the GMRPTC reviews applications for upgrades to designated parks and trails across the state, then forwards its recommendation to the Minnesota Legislature for approval through the Parks and Trails Legacy Fund.

The Legislature has annually approved GMRPTC requests since Legacy Funds are part of the 2008 Minnesota Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment and may only be spent to support parks and trails of regional or statewide significance. The commission is recommending 14 projects statewide.

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