Lester Prairie parks new and improved
With an assortment of improvement projects, Lester Prairie’s parks seem to be getting better every year.
Central Square Park was completed in the fall of 2009 and dedicated during Prairie Days 2010.
Lester Prairie City Park has new dugouts, and there are plans to improve the field lighting and also add a flying disc golf course.
The other two main parks include Sunrise Nature Park and Prairie Ridge Park.
Legion memorial honors veterans
In 2010, the Lester Prairie Legion began a project in which the names of local veterans will be engraved on one of the polished black granite stones in the new Lester Prairie veterans memorial in Central Square Park.
A dedication of the new memorial was scheduled for Monday, May 30, 2011.
Veterans and their families may purchase names to be engraved on the stones at a cost of $100 per name.
Anyone who served in any of the branches of the military and has a connection to Lester Prairie is eligible.
Any veteran who served in World War I or following conflicts is eligible.
Those who served in the National Guard or Reserve during peacetime, who do not meet the requirements for membership in the VFW or Legion, are also eligible, Mlynar said.
The memorial is open to living, as well as deceased veterans, Legion member Ed Mlynar said.
Each entry will contain three lines of text, with a maximum of 19 characters or spaces per line.
Order forms are available at Lester Prairie City Hall, the Lester Prairie Post Office, or by contacting Lester Prairie Legion members.
After the first phase is completed, the Legion will collect names for the second phase of the project, but it will be a year before the order for phase two is placed, according to Mlynar.
Comments may be directed to Mlynar at (320) 395-2258, by e-mail at edmlynar@embarqmail.com, or mailed to Ed Mlynar, PO Box 221, Lester Prairie, MN 55354.
Central Square Park
Development of Lester Prairie’s new downtown park, located at the intersection of Central Avenue and Juniper Street, was substantially completed in 2009.
The project began in 2006, when a committee put together a plan that included installation of a new gazebo, walkways, benches, lighting, and landscaping.
An area in the northwest corner of the park will be used for a Legion memorial.
In addition to many hours of labor and donated materials, five benches, a picnic table, and a trash receptacle were also donated.
An official dedication ceremony of the park took place during Prairie Days 2010.
Sunrise Nature Park
Many area residents and visitors enjoy peaceful, relaxing days at Sunrise Nature Park on the east side of Lester Prairie.
It’s a unique place to find a variety of prairie grass, such as Indian grass, switch grass, bluestem, Canada wild rye, and wheatgrass.
Visitors are also able to see goldenrod, prairie coreopsis, coneflowers, iris, sunflowers, prairie rose, butterfly weed, and black- and brown-eyed susans.
The 50-acre park has been completely open to visitors since 2007, and its amenities continue to improve each year.
Last year, a message board was installed at the main parking lot entrance off of McLeod County Road 9. A wooden overlook was also put in, east of the parking lot.
Sunrise Nature Park features both woods and grassland on property purchased with a grant from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Some of the plants in Sunrise Nature Park don’t typically grow in Minnesota, so the grant requires that these plants be preserved.
Additional grant money allowed for more than 10 acres of wildflower and prairie grass seeding on the south side of the park.
Many types of animals also make their home in the park, including deer, wild turkey, and a variety of songbirds.
The park has been named an official wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.
Future plans for the park include additional features such as a butterfly habitat, bird habitat, walking paths, observation areas, a shelter, and picnic areas, as well as the installation of a variety of indigenous evergreen trees.
Additional park benches and trash receptacles will be added throughout the park and at trail entrances, and a picnic area was recently created on Prairie Hill, near the center of the park.
Additional trail development and improvements will continue during the next several years.
Sunrise Nature Park is open to the public, but no motorized vehicles are allowed in the park.
For more information, or to help with Sunrise Nature Park, contact Bob Messer by e-mail at: rdmesser@yahoo.com, or call (320) 395-2975.
Lester Prairie City Park
Located on the south side of Second Avenue South near Pine Street South, Lester Prairie City Park has great amenities, along with many improvements in the works.
An exciting feature that will soon be added is a flying disc golf course.
A plan is also underway to replace the mercury vapor lights at Bulldog Field with metal halide lamps, which would be more energy-efficient. The project includes replacing the lamps and ballasts, sandblasting and repainting the poles, and rewiring the poles.
Anyone who wishes to make a donation to the Bulldog Field lighting restoration project can drop it off at First Community Bank Lester Prairie or mail a check to PO Box 503, Lester Prairie, MN 55354.
An improvement that was made last year was the installation of new dugouts. Half of the $4,900 project was paid for through a grant from the Twins Community Fund, a non-profit organization that provides baseball/softball resources for youth.
The City of Lester Prairie, along with a donation from RAM Buildings and Jackels & Ross Concrete, funded the rest.
The new dugouts replaced ones that had been put in about 60 years ago.
“The old ones were starting to fall apart, and the blocks were crumbling,” said Troy Feltmann, who is on the park board and is involved in Little League coaching in Lester Prairie.
“We have a pretty decent Little League program here,” Feltmann said, adding that there are about 250 participants.
This spring, the dugout will be painted or stained.
Lester Prairie City Park is perfect for get-togethers, with playground equipment, grills, picnic shelters, and restrooms.
There is also a heated outdoor pool staffed by certified lifeguards. It has two slides, a diving board, and other equipment. For more outdoor excitement, people can try out the park’s tennis court, basketball court, and sand volleyball court.
There is one baseball field, one lighted softball/football field (Bulldog Field), two Little League fields, and a T-ball field.
A batting tunnel is also available.
Prairie Ridge Park
In addition to the city park, there is playground equipment in Prairie Ridge Park, which is located in the Prairie Ridge development on the east side of the city.
