City Administrator Mike Ristelho said the long-running Lions Park renovation is nearing completion and that the city will hold a reopening and ribbon-cutting on Thursday, May 29 at 4:30 p.m.

Ristelho described the park project as “something we’ve been working on… for over 8 years” and said the pond has been dredged and the dam rebuilt to allow for larger stocked fish. He said the farmers market will return to Lions Park and that park renovations included added electrical infrastructure to support events and vendors.

Ristelho also said the Lions Park Community Center is in the architectural design phase with Design West. He described the project as a partnership involving the YMCA, the rural library district, and the community college; planned elements include a childcare facility, a community kitchen, and a permanent rural library branch. Ristelho said the city aims to secure state, federal and outside grant funding and hopes the center could be built between 2026 and 2027, with the new center replacing the current community center on the same site.

Ristelho noted that some federal grants that originally funded park work were paused and that the city is using savings that had been planned for a Veterans Park renovation to complete Lions Park.