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| Address | Chehalis, Washington |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 46°39′04″N122°57′24″W / 46.65111°N 122.95667°W |
The Recreation Park Complex is located in Chehalis, Washington in the city's South Market district near the Green Hill School. The venue, also known as the Chehalis Sports Complex, [1] contains four distinct parks within its borders, providing recreation for athletics, walking, swimming, and playground activities.
Land for the park complex, totaling 13-acres (5.3 ha), was donated by the state's Department of Highways to the city of Chehalis in 1945. [2] [3] [lower-alpha 1]
A proposal by a local fitness club was introduced in 1996 that planned to construct a fitness center, listed at 19,000 square feet (1,800 m2), and integrate the existing community pool into the overall layout. The city council pursued the idea, in part due to difficulties in funding of the swimming pool, and the proposal received some local support. However, due to a combination of deed restrictions and strong public vehemence, the fitness organization withdrew the idea from public consideration. [3] [5]
| Recreation Park | |
|---|---|
 | |
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| Type | Athletics, walking, picnic |
| Area | 13-acres (5.3 ha) |
| Designated | 1945, park opened 1954 |
| Status | Open all year |
| Paths | Concrete |
| Terrain | Flat |
| Parking | Street and lot, bicycle racks |
| Public transit access | Twin Transit |
| Facilities | Bathrooms, concession stand, community building and kitchen |
Located in Chehalis's South Market district, the park is the largest part of the Recreation Park Complex. Geared mostly for athletics, the area incorporates softball and youth baseball fields, picnic areas, and concrete walking paths. The Virgil R. Lee Community Building and the Fred Hess Kitchen are also located on the property and can be rented.
The first early efforts to convert the area to a park began in 1946 with the construction of a baseball field [6] and renovations to the grounds continued into the 1950s, adding restrooms and more ballfields, specifically for Little League. [4] [7] [8]
The grounds were officially transferred by deed to the city in 1953, [9] with the park built and completed in 1954. [10] The venue was awarded to host a district Little League tournament in 1955 [11] and Little League baseball was played at the park until the 1970s. [9] A small playground was situated on the grounds, with a rose garden eventually added in the 1960s. [10]
As part of the 50th anniversary of the Rotary International, the Chehalis chapter built and donated the Virgil R. Lee Community Building in 1955. The 28 ft × 72 ft (8.5 m × 21.9 m) building, constructed at a cost of almost $10,000, included a kitchen, fireplace, and was to be used as a youth community center. [12] [13] The center, built in a log cabin style without the use of nails, was officially dedicated in October 1955. [14]
The park grounds held a variety of different attractions during its early years. A steam locomotive once used by the Cowlitz, Chehalis and Cascade Railway was donated by the company and placed at the venue in 1955. [15] [16] The train engine used to travel between the city and Winston. [17] The locomotive was removed in the mid-1980s and became part of a heritage railway, the Chehalis–Centralia Railroad. Later that year, a brick war memorial was constructed at Recreation Park. Meant to honor service members of all branches of the United States military who perished during wartime, it included a 13 foot (4.0 metres) spiral monument with an inscribed plaque. [18] In 1959, a tree stump meant to be a platform for a visit from President William McKinley was transferred to the park. Known in Chehalis as the "McKinley Stump", [lower-alpha 2] it was removed in 2007 due to severe damage from carpenter ants. [19] [20]
An attempt in 2005 to rename the area as Rotary Recreation Park, due to the organization's long, recognized efforts, was not successful so as to not marginalize other volunteers and groups involved over the park's history. [21] Beginning in 2015, feasibility studies were undertaken to plan ahead for a future renovation of the area. Attempts to relocate the ballfields from Recreation Park by building new fields at Stan Hedwall Park and subsequently transferring baseball and softball competitions there, did not proceed. [22]
A renovation, consisting of several phases, began in August 2019. [23] [24] The cost of the plan was $4 million, with significant funding coming from the Chehalis Foundation, the National Park Service, and a Youth Athletic Facilities grant from Washington state. An $800,000 donation came from a trust created by a Chehalis family. [24] Other funds were raised from a variety of grants, local volunteer drives, [24] and state funds; the four ballfields were named after large donors. [23] The project consisted of adding artificial turf to the ballfields, sod replacement, fixing drainage issues, a new irrigation system, installing all-weather walkways, and upgrading the concession stand and dugouts. [9] [24] The updates to the ballfields were declared as completed in 2022 with the grounds projected to generate $1 million in annual tax revenue for the city. [25]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and requirements for social distancing, the reopening of the park was postponed several times between 2020 and 2021. [26] The official grand reopening was held in August 2021. [27] New funding from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) in late 2023 provided the opportunity to upgrade the restrooms on the grounds, including the facilities at the spray park. [1]
The park continues to be the home field of the W.F. West Bearcats softball team, an overall five-time state champion. [9] [28] A "Music in the Park" festival is held every summer at the park. [29]
| Penny Playground | |
|---|---|
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| | |
| Type | Children's playground |
| Area | less than 1-acre |
| Opened | 1993 |
| Founder | Dr. John Hendrickson |
| Designer | Robert S. Leathers & Associates Architects, Ithaca, NY |
| Etymology | Named after "penny" fundraising effort |
| Managed by | Connie Smalls (original build) [30] |
| Status | Open |
| Paths | Perimeter sidewalk |
| Terrain | Artificial grass, flat with some slight inclines |
| Parking | Street and lot; bicycle racks |
| Facilities | Bathrooms in surrounding park area |
The effort to build Penny Playground began in 1992 through community initiative and fundraising, with a non-profit corporation created to oversee the project that year. From inception until completion, donations of $120,000 were collected from diverse businesses and charities, with a majority of funds gathered from Chehalis residents, including $1,200 by students from the Chehalis Middle School. [31] The sale of $30,000 worth of timber from Duffy Park was designated for the project. [32] In 1993, with a volunteer workgroup numbering 2,000 people, the playground was constructed in 5 days at a cost of $80,000. [31] [32] A time capsule was buried in 1994 and reopened in 2019. [33] [34] The name of the park was chosen from submissions by local schoolchildren: the "penny" moniker representing the fundraising drive to collect pennies to help pay for the construction. [31] [34] [35]
A restoration of the park was necessary by 2019 as the original timber equipment, having surpassed its 20-year lifespan, had begun to deteriorate from dry rot, with additional concerns over the toxic chemicals in the treated wood, a lack of spare parts, and not meeting current safety requirements. [36] The process began with a groundbreaking ceremony in October 2019. Funds totaling $1.3 million for the project were raised by assorted government departments within Washington state and Lewis County, local service groups such as the Kiwanis and Rotary International, and local businesses and residents. [37] Students from several elementary schools in Chehalis raised $12,000; Lintott Elementary School was responsible for over $8,000. [38] Residents donated money to the project via the Chehalis Foundation by purchasing commemorative pennies that were hung on a donation fence encompassing the playground. [39] [40] The new ADA compliant playground was furnished with all-weather equipment, a perimeter path, cushioning artificial turf, and sculptures, with a new parking lot and improved sidewalks around the area. [39]
The reopening of the playground was postponed several times in 2020-2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and further delayed by $150,000 in damages from a hit-and-run vehicular accident. [26] [41] The park reopened in May 2021 after repairs from the crash were completed and additional improvements were made to protect the area from any similar future incident. [42] A final addition to the playground was in 2022 with a "communication wall" meant for non-verbal, autistic, or verbally impaired children. [25]
| Gail and Carolyn Shaw Aquatics Center | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Opened | August 2014 |
| Previous names | Chehalis Community Pool |
| Operating season | Late spring to autumn |
| Status | Operating |
| Pools | A single pool |
| Water slides | 2 water slides |
The center was constructed to replace the original Chehalis Community Pool [9] after a renovation project begun in 2012 morphed into a necessary replacement of the facility due to requirements for safety, appeal, and compliance with the American With Disabilities Act. [43] The breadth of the proposal increased further due in large part to considerable donations from the local community, and an influx of a combined grant and budget item of $750,000 from the state government. [44] Additional financial support soon followed by prominent Chehalis people and businesses, notably Orin C. Smith and the center's moniker, Gail and Carolyn Shaw. [43] The initial cost was finalized at $2.7 million. [44] The aquatic center opened in August 2014 with an official ribbon cutting the following month. [44] [45]
Maintenance and upgrades took place in 2019 and 2021 to make repairs, resurface the pool, [46] and to increase the square footage and shading of the pool deck. [47]
| Chet and Henrietta Rhodes Spray Park | |
|---|---|
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| Theme | Young children’s outdoor water play |
| Opened | 2007 |
| Previous names | Kiddy Spray Pool |
| Operating season | Late spring to autumn |
| Status | Operating |
The Chet and Henrietta Rhodes Spray Park is adjacent to the Gail and Carolyn Shaw Aquatics Center. It is open to the public and free of charge. Completed in 2007, local fundraisers produced $120,000 for the project that was built as a "fun and safe space for young children’s outdoor water play". [48] The former wading pool was removed and sponsorship bricks were added to the wall surrounding the play area. [49] Initially given the title "Kiddy Spray Pool", [49] the area was named after the parents of a local donor. [50]
The grounds of the complex host 4 bronze statues of young children in various forms of play. A statue of three girls dancing is located outside of the spray area, and the aquatic center hosts a likeness of a young girl sitting on a counter inside the center. Penny Playground features two young boys climbing a tree in the center of the play area. A statute of a young girl playing softball, posed in mid-pitch, stands near the ballfields in Recreation Park. It was installed in May 2024 and was dedicated to the girl's fastpitch team at the high school. The children represented in the artworks are based on the grandchildren of a local family who donated the statues. [51]
Despite the Ol' Swimmin' Hole and sandy beach that existed at Lintott-Alexander Park, [52] [53] several attempts had been made by the city of Chehalis to build a community pool in the early part of the 20th century. One such plan included implementing and converting parts of the infrastructure of a reservoir and a ravine at John Dobson Park. [54]
Due to costs and unrealized planning, a swimming pool was never constructed until the 1950s. The beginnings of the Chehalis Community Pool started from a 1955 city-wide survey of residents that asked of the most pressing needs for the community. A pool came in third on the report, however, a $175,000 bond to build a retractable roof pool facility was rejected the next year. A different proposal was brought to the ballot in 1957 and was approved. [55] Construction began that year but, despite rallies and support from the Chehalis High School student body, [55] finalizing the build ended inauspiciously in December, with a lack of funding and community participation in completing the $125,000 project. [56] After a transfer of funds from the city's parking meter fund [57] and a last minute delay due to vandalism, [58] the pool opened to the public during an evening ceremony, which included a synchronized swimming performance, in June 1958. [59]
The Chehalis Community Pool, measuring 75 ft × 82.5 ft (22.9 m × 25.1 m), was designed in an L-shape, providing two distinct zones for swimming and diving. [57] [59] It was specifically built of steel due to concerns of earthquakes based on the 1949 Olympia earthquake. [55] The facilities were enclosed in a brick fence and included a bathhouse. The venue was also constructed so that it could be converted into an indoor swimming facility at a later time. [57] [60]
The pool became a focal point of the community and by the end of the 1965 season, 36,000 swimmers were recorded using the recreation center. [61] In the 1970s, the city's park board held an annual swim meet which included a contest for the funniest dive, another event known as "Jive and Dive" where the pool was open at night for music, dancing, and evening swims, and a bicycle rally that originated from the venue. [62] [63] By 1977, the city began a renewed interest in covering the pool after a resident survey indicated a desire for such. [64] Never built, the enclosure idea was brought up again in 1996 due to continuing public demand. [3] The venue remained an outdoor pool facility during its existence. [55]
Attendance at the pool began to wane in the 2000s, with numbers for an entire season registered at 5,000. [65] Funding cuts were implemented, hours to access the pool were reduced, and positions eliminated in order to keep the pool open and fiscally viable. [66] A planned renovation, estimated to cost $2.2 million, [55] was begun in the 2010s, but due to age and lack of ADA amenities, the pool and facilities were demolished and replaced by the Gail and Carolyn Shaw Aquatics Center beginning in 2012. [9] [43]
Centralia is a city in Lewis County, Washington, United States. It is located along Interstate 5 near the midpoint between Seattle and Portland, Oregon. The city had a population of 18,183 at the 2020 census. Centralia is twinned with Chehalis, located to the south near the confluence of the Chehalis and Newaukum rivers.
Chehalis is a city in and the county seat of Lewis County, Washington, United States. The population was 7,439 at the time of the 2020 census.
Adna is an unincorporated community located in Lewis County, Washington.
McCarren Park is a public park in Brooklyn, New York City. It is located on the border of Williamsburg and Greenpoint and is bordered by Nassau Avenue, Bayard Street, Lorimer Street and North 12th Street. The park contains facilities for recreational softball, volleyball, soccer, handball, and other games. It is also used for sunbathing and dog-walking. It also includes the McCarren Play Center, which consists of a recreation center and a pool. McCarren Park is maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
Red Hook Recreation Area, also known as Red Hook Park, is a 58.5-acre (237,000 m2) public park in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City, composed of several segments centered around Bay Street. The park's recreational facilities include handball courts, softball fields, a soccer and football field, and a running track. The Sol Goldman Play Center, within the block bounded by Bay, Henry, Lorraine and Clinton Streets, consists of a brick bathhouse and two pools. The park is operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, also known as NYC Parks.
Astoria Park is a 59.96-acre (24.26 ha) public park in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens in New York City. The park is situated on the eastern shore of the Hell Gate, a strait of the East River, between Ditmars Boulevard to the north and Hoyt Avenue to the south. The Robert F. Kennedy (Triborough) and Hell Gate Bridges respectively pass over the park's southern and northern sections. Astoria Park contains a playground, a soccer field, a running track, a skate park, and courts for tennis, basketball, and bocce. Astoria Park also includes the Astoria Play Center, which consists of a recreation center and a pool. The park and play center are maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
Boistfort is an unincorporated community in the northwest United States, in Lewis County, Washington, about twenty miles (30 km) southwest of Chehalis. The original one-room school in Boistfort was established in 1853 and was the first school district in Lewis County and the Territory of Washington.
Crotona Park is a public park in the South Bronx in New York City, covering 127.5 acres (51.6 ha). The park is bounded by streets of the same name on its northern, eastern, southern, and western borders, and is adjacent to the Crotona Park East and Morrisania neighborhoods of the Bronx. It is divided into four portions by Claremont Parkway and Crotona Avenue, which run through it.
Rainbow Falls State Park is a public recreation area on the Chehalis River. It is situated off Washington State Route 6 and is approximately 1.0-mile (1.6 km) east of the town of Dryad, Washington.
The Flushing Meadows Corona Park Aquatics Center and Ice Rink, also known as the Flushing Meadows Corona Park Aquatics Center or Flushing Meadows Natatorium, is a 110,000-square-foot (10,000 m2) facility in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, Queens, New York City, with an Olympic-sized pool and an NHL-standard rink. Built in 2008, the $66.3 million project is the first indoor public pool to open in New York City in four decades. Initially, the building was intended to serve as the venue for water polo events during the 2012 Summer Olympics, but when the city's bid was lost to London, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation proceeded to build the pool anyway. The result is an innovative building with 130-foot-high twin masts and a swooping roof form. The masts are an architectural feature extending up into the Queens skyline as well as the structural supports for the cable-stayed roof. This design provides the clear spans necessary to house an Olympic swimming pool along with an ice skating rink.
Parks and recreation in Chehalis, Washington is administered by the Chehalis Parks and Recreation Department. Trails that connect Chehalis with locations beyond the city limits are maintained in conjunction with other local jurisdictions, state government agencies, and/or local non-profit groups and volunteers.
Westside Park is located in Chehalis, Washington in the city's Pennsylvania Avenue-West Side Historic District which was catalogued on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1991.
Stan Hedwall Park is the largest park in Chehalis, Washington at 204-acres. It is located west of I-5, and southeast of Lintott-Alexander Park and the beginning trailhead for the Willapa Hills Trail.
Millett Field is the oldest, continuously used public park in Chehalis, Washington and is most noted as home to a Chehalis minor-league baseball team in the early 20th century. The ballfield was regularly used as the central hub of Chehalis sporting activity for decades, including hosting games for several Negro League teams in the 1920s. Located in the city's South Market district, one block north of the NRHP-listed O. B. McFadden House, the 3.3-acre (1.3 ha) park began in 1898.
Lintott-Alexander Park is a 6-acre (2.4 ha) park in Chehalis, Washington, located west of I-5 and south of Washington State Route 6. Due to its location in a bend of the Chehalis River and at the confluence of the Newaukum River, the park can flood in most years.
John Dobson and McFadden Parks were once the center of the Chehalis, Washington park system and they were referred to by residents as the "Top-of-the-Hill" parks due to their proximity to one another. They are the two oldest non-athletic parks in Chehalis. Begun as memorials to well respected Chehalis residents, they are located in the Hillside district on Park Hill, above and east of the historic downtown. The parks are connected by the Dobson-McFadden Trail.
Henderson Park is located in Chehalis, Washington in the city's South Market district and is a block northeast of nearby Recreation Park.
The Willapa Hills Trail is a 56.0-mile (90.1 km) intercounty rail trail in the U.S. state of Washington that is part of the Willapa Hills State Park. Following an east–west route alongside State Route 6, the tract links Chehalis and South Bend, traveling through or near several small towns and parks along the way. Overseen by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission, local cities and towns often maintain areas of the trail within their jurisdictions. The trail is built upon a decommissioned railroad track.
Green Hill School is part of Washington state's correctional system under the Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration, and is the state's only maximum security penitentiary for youths. It is located in the South Market district of Chehalis on I-5, next to Recreation Park.
The Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority is a state government program that oversees the watershed of the Chehalis River in Washington state. The commission focuses on flood control and river health, as well as habitat restoration, with particular attention to native plants, fish, and other aquatic species. It partners with various non-profits, local organizations, Native American communities and tribes, and other state and federal government agencies, often through its program, the Chehalis Basin Strategy.
See photo and caption - Yesterday In Chehalis - above article