Thanks to the generosity of the Yakima Sunrise Rotary Club, work will begin this Saturday on the construction of two new picnic shelters at Randall Park.
A groundbreaking ceremony to kick off the project is planned for Friday, May 6th at 3:30 pm near the wildlife ponds, which are located off the 44th Avenue entrance to the popular City of Yakima park.
“We hope to have the shelters done in time for Memorial Day visitors to enjoy,” said Sunrise Rotary President Jeff Scott. The picnic shelters will be 30 feet in diameter and the Rotary club is donating time, labor and money to make the project a reality.
“This is just another great example of the community stepping up to make Yakima a better place to live,” said Yakima Parks and Recreation Manager Ken Wilkinson. “Randall Park has already seen a lot of improvements in recent years thanks to contributions made by local service clubs and other volunteer organizations,” added Wilkinson.
Those improvements include new playground equipment, replacing the basketball court, construction of an observation deck, and wildlife habitat improvements along Wide Hollow Creek.
More work is on the drawing board thanks to a $500,000 state grant the City received in 2015. The money will help pay for construction of a new restroom, rebuilding of pathways, reconstruction of parking lots and a variety of other improvements including pedestrian lighting and new signage and fencing.
Randall Park covers more than 40 acres and is located south of Nob Hill Boulevard between 44th and 48th avenues.