Lake Park Pavilion funding released
COSHOCTON – Speaker Larry Householder announced that the State Controlling Board approved the release of funding for the Lake Park Pavilion renovation project.
The $19,693 for the Coshocton Park District supports upgrades to the HVAC systems, ductwork and water heater at the historic facility. Park Director Lori Everhart said the total cost for the project is $150,000 and this grant will help offset the cost of that.
“We are trying to make our money go further by leveraging grant money,” she said. “If we can use grant money to pay for a portion of this project then our other money will go further.”
The funding is being provided through the state’s NatureWorks program. For more than 25 years, the NatureWorks program has provided grants to local communities to assist with the acquisition, development and rehabilitation of recreational areas.
“The NatureWorks grant is on an annual cycle and we applied in May or June,” Everhart said. “They typically don’t announce the awards until fall.”
She added that this is phase four of a multi phase project for the pavilion.
“We did interior and exterior painting, put on a brand new roof and switched over lighting to LED to make it more efficient,” Everhart said. “This phase will be the heating, air conditioning and new water heater. We are updating with a larger system too. We have a lot of events in here and it’s really difficult to heat the pavilion and keep it cool. We felt a larger unit would do a better job. The current unit is from 1996. It has some age on it and the new one will be much more efficient. With phase five we are hoping to replace the wood floor.”
The pavilion was built in 1923 and will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2023.
“The Lake Park Pavilion is a real treasure and I’ve enjoyed my visits there through the years,” said Householder (R-Glenford).
The pavilion project is one of 85 statewide that were approved in this round of funding for NatureWorks grants.
“The NatureWorks program through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources has helped us tremendously with a variety of projects around the park including the new bathhouse at the campgrounds and a 1996 renovation project at the pavilion,” Everhart said. “We’ve done quite a few things with it that we wouldn’t have been able to do without the grant program helping us make our money go further.”
Category: People & Places
