Lions celebrate new park in Seeley Lake

Monkey bars, rock walls and double slides took the attention of most children walking around the Lions Club Park in Seeley Lake on Saturday, June 10. The club hosted its grand opening of a new playground, which should be a good alternative to the elementary school's now-dismantled structure.

The project cemented a cornerstone into the Lions park, which has long maintained the ground for Missoula County. Rich Westin, a Seeley Lake Lions Club member, said the playground will make the area feel more like "the town's park."

"A lot of people use the Seeley Lake Elementary School playground, which created some problems," Westin said. "It made sense to add a playground here and keep developing this spot."

The park land is owned by the County, but the Lions Club has managed the area for several years. Westin noted that the park used to be in disrepair before the Lions took over. They made it into an ice skating pond with a fully-stocked skate shed, a new pit toilet, walking paths, benches and more.

After fundraising, the Lions Club still needed more money to pay for the new addition. Luckily, Missoula County matched the Lions with a grant, totalling around $62,000. Not only could the club pay for the new playground, it also purchased a new tractor to help maintain the pathways.

Rachel Feigley, a member of the Lions club, said she thought the project was a great way to use taxpayer funds.

"The community kids are already using it, and it compliments this great park well," Feigley said.

The playground structure itself is made of weather and heat resistant plastic and warrantied for 15 years, Westin said. Snow will likely submerge the park in the winter, so the longevity of the quality grade plastic might be longer. The grand opening also featured a lunch and a raffle to win a seven day vacation to Belize.