New fun is built at Cotton Park, in Coleraine

Coleraine’s recreation just got a new location, as on August 8th, volunteers from the community pitch in to set up Cotton Park Playground.

The CEDA alongside Coleraine’s City Council and local volunteers all gather together to build a new playground next to the lake. And over August 8th and 9th they worked to change the land from what it was to a shiny brand-new recreational area.

According to Theresa Troumbly, a Coleraine city council member, the location was not the most enjoyable spots to be and even had health issues.

“And the playground equipment here was pretty dated. It would not pass ADA standards. It really started bordering on being unsafe. So, this is a project we need to get going on right away. And CEDA was instrumental in getting this going.”

How the Playground Came to be

CEDA worked alongside many other sponsors and corporations to make this playground possible. This was actually a multi collaborative grant funded project. And that made 100% of the pay for this park come from either donations or grants sponsored. So, no money from the tax base is actually from the city of Coleraine. This playground, most of the funding came from the Blandin Foundation, IRR R and the Greenway Area Community Foundation. And then the city also received a private donation from someone. An anonymous donor.

This project brought lots of community members together to build this playground, as they even got help from local communities outside of Coleraine.

A few years ago, a neighboring community, Bovee, put in a new park. And the people from Coleraine went over and helped out. And now they got Bovee people over here helping them out today too.

Supporting Local Businesses

Sarah Carling, a member of CEDA, expressed the impact and why they decided to build a playground in the Cotton Park on Trout Lake.

“We’ve put in about 11 playgrounds now in the last two and a half years. With that being said, we’ve seen people coming from all over northeast Minnesota to explore the parks that we’re putting in here. And I truly believe that where this park is being put in will not only strengthen who’s visiting Coleraine, but also visiting the businesses that are nearby.”

With local businesses, such as Four Seasons Market, Smoke on the Water Restaurant, a Hollywood Bait and a kayak station the community’s hope is that this park will bring enjoyable recreational activities to the area support local businesses.

Playground Location

They plan to be working till about eight o’clock tonight, so long as the weather continues to cooperate. Then Tomorrow morning at eight o’clock in the morning and plan to be there until it’s finished.

They currently anticipate that’ll go until at least three o’clock in the afternoon. Anybody who wants to stop down to see or give a helping hand, are openly welcomed to.