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VIDEO: 73-acre Legacy Park in north Lethbridge now open to the public

Jul 26, 2018 | 4:32 PM

LETHBRIDGE – From its conception, to completion and opening of Phase One, Lethbridge’s newest 73-acre park on the city’s north side, has been more than 10 years in the making.

The $22.6 million park was funded partially by the City of Lethbridge “Pay as you Go,” and Community Reserve funds ( $4.51 million), a “Subdivision Surplus” ($5.4 million), and by a provincial government Municiple Sustainability Initiative Grant of $12.75 million.

A ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the park’s opening was held Thursday, July 26, with dignitaries including Mayor Chris Spearman, former Mayors Bob Tarleck and Rajko Dodic, several past and current councillors, interim City Manager Kathy Hopkins, former City Manager Garth Sherwin, Environment and Parks Minister Shannon Phillips and MLA Maria Fitzpatrick, and Premier Rachel Notley.

 

 

Notley told the crowd gathered for the opening, that the park will provide a space for people to come together and provide a better sense of community for decades to come. 

“Kids, especially, will benefit. Time outside, exploring their natural surroundings, getting away from computer screens and TV and forgetting to bring their phones.”

Mayor Chris Spearman said a regional park was needed on the north side; Henderson Park is located on the south side, while the west side has Nicholas Sheran Park.

Right now, the area includes a skatepark, basketball courts, pickleball courts, two playgrounds, four kilometres of pathways, an amphitheatre with a performance stage, several ponds, a fitness circuit and a sledding hill.

“So, the day has come, and we’re here to celebrate,” said Spearman. “Not only a fantastic day for Lethbridge, but the type of regional park that will attract people from all over Lethbridge to use it.”

City Parks Manager Dave Ellis says a lot of work went into the park that most people might not even realize.

“There’s around 7,500 truck loads of dirt that had to be moved twice to make this work. There’s about 1,300 trees and 3,000 shrubs. There’s 4.5 kilometres of electrical line underground that you don’t see. There are 28 kilometres of irrigation pipe that you don’t see, connected to over 2,000 irrigation heads that will keep this park green.”

And one of the things that Ellis says he’s most proud of, is that all of that water used to keep the park green, is non-potable. Meaning, that it doesn’t come from the water treatment plant. A line has been run 3.5 kilometres to the St. Mary’s Irrigation District canal, which will save the city about 7,000,000 litres of water per week.

Ellis says the park is still in its infancy stage and more construction will begin shortly on the second phase.

It will include a new spray park, a children’s adventure park, a community pavilion, a picnic shelter, and several gardens that will be run by the city’s horticultural society.

The entire park should be completed by 2020.