Nine communities to build athletic fields, tennis courts, playscapes, trails
DENVER – New Lottery-funded grants will make it possible for several Colorado communities build or restore recreational facilities that will increase outdoor activities but also help local economies by attracting visitors and reducing travel costs.
The Great Outdoors Colorado Board has approved nine grants worth more than $2.2 million to build baseball fields, tennis courts, natural playscapes, a pedestrian bridge and a track facility. The fortunate grant winners were selected from a pool of 36 applications seeking more than $9.3 million in assistance.
The grants approved by the GOCO board will:
- Complete Lamar’s baseball-softball “four-plex,” allowing it to meet overwhelming local demand and attract more tournaments to the Southeast Colorado community;
- Allow Monte Vista to host a Colorado High School Sports Association event for the first time in 30 years as its current cinder track did not meet standards;
- Replace worn out tennis courts in Crested Butte, where usage has increased dramatically in recent years;
- Replace a rough 70-year-old athletic field and dilapidated 60-year-old bleachers – a portion of which collapsed during a game – and create a community recreational walkway at Manzanola High School;
- Restore a baseball field in Coal Creek, ending the need for local players to drive 30 miles for practices and games, and giving the community its first playground.
- Install a 130-foot steel bridge in Pagosa Springs that will increase connectivity to the community’s many parks and amenities for outdoor recreation.
Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) invests a portion of Colorado Lottery proceeds to help preserve and enhance the state’s parks, trails, wildlife, rivers and open spaces. GOCO’s independent board awards competitive grants to local governments and land trusts, and makes investments through Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Created by voters in 1992, GOCO has funded more than 3,500 projects in all 64 counties without any tax dollar support. The grants are funded by GOCO’s share of Lottery revenues, which are divided between GOCO, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the Conservation Trust Fund and school construction.
Grant details:
ARCHUELTA COUNTY
Pagosa Springs Sixth Street Pedestrian Bridge
Grant: $242,519
The Town of Pagosa Springs will install an ADA-compliant, 130-foot pedestrian and bike bridge that will cross the San Juan River and dramatically improve connectivity between two sections of the River Walk, improving community access to parks, river viewing areas, river portage sites, athletic fields and other destinations. Interpretative signage is planned.
EAGLE COUNTY
Rock Bottom Ranch Eco-Trail System
Grant: $242,660
The Town of Basalt, in partnership with the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies, will construct an “Eco-Ed” trail that will feature water access, a natural playscape and gathering area. It will permit the center to expand its curriculum and allow more users to visit the ranch. The ranch’s location along the Rio Grande Trail will allow many recreational users to utilize the ranch as well.
FREMONT COUNTY
Coal Creek Community Park
Grant: $105,000
The Town of Coal Creek will renovate its Community Park, which has limited use due to drainage and safety issues. The project will include safety fencing, drainage remediation, a restroom and park amenities. The ball fields will be improved – allowing local players now traveling 30 miles to Canon City for practices and games to stay in Coal Creek -- and a new natural play area will be installed. The town presently has no playground for kids.
GUNNISON COUNTY
Crested Butte tennis court renovation
Grant: $191,227
The Town of Crested Butte will construct three full-sized, post-tensioned concrete tennis courts to replace 35-year-old courts at its town park that will have to be closed if not replaced due to deterioration. The project will also include a shade structure, sidewalks and landscaping. The town’s tennis programs have increased 157 percent in the last five years
MESA COUNTY
Las Colonias Park, Phase 1
Grant: $298,757
The City of Grand Junction will make improvements to the park by adding a much needed restroom, shelter, parking, lighting, trail connections, and a native arboretum adjacent to its botanical gardens. Improvements are expected to increase family usage of the park, which now sees about 38,000 visitors a year. The park improvement is the final project within the Colorado Riverfront Commission’s 1987 vision for a contiguous park and trail system along the river.
OTERO COUNTY
Manzanola Recreation Facility Enhancement
Grant: $208,256
Otero County will renovate Manzanola High School recreational facilities that have fallen into disrepair. The county will resurface the athletic field, replacing turf that hasn’t been improved in 70 years, and install underground sprinklers. It also will build sidewalks, a recreational walkway for the community, make an existing restroom ADA-compliant, add a water fountain and replace 60-year-old bleachers, a portion of which collapsed during a recent football game
PROWERS COUNTY
Lamar Sports Complex
Grant: $239,822
The City of Lamar will complete the final two of four fields for its baseball/softball complex, enabling the facility to serve the entire Southeast Colorado region, including Lamar Community College which does not have its own fields. The ability to host more games and tournaments will also be an economic boon to the community. This was the fourth application to GOCO for funding.
RIO GRANDE COUNTY
Monte Vista Community Sports Complex
Grant: $350,000
The City of Monte Vista, in partnership with the Monte Vista School District, will construct an all-weather track and a health and wellness park with restrooms and exercise stations. The school was recently constructed with a state BEST grant – which receives lottery revenues – but funding fell short for the athletic facilities. The project will have a positive economic effect as well since the school has not been able host CHSAA track meets for three decades due to its current cinder track that does not meet CHSAA standards and is often unusable due to poor drainage. The nearest all-weather track is presently 30 miles away.
TELLER COUNTY
Gateway Playground and multipurpose field
Grant: $350,000
The City of Woodland Park, in partnership with the Woodland Park School District Re-2, will renovate the school’s playground to include an artificial turf field, safety surfacing, shade structure and other amenities. A multi-use field was lost to commercial development so the city hopes the improved playground will help replace the field and meet overwhelming demand.