Category Overview
Local Parks grants help protect these symbols of vibrant communities, providing places for families to gather and play and promoting a healthy and active lifestyle in an era when people spend increasing amounts of their time inside. The WWRP is the largest source of local parks funding in Washington, helping communities fund the acquisition, development, and renovation of vital recreation areas and green spaces.
Project Highlights
The Olympia Parks, Arts & Recreation Department utilized this grant to buy 9.14 acres on Ward Lake for a public swimming beach. Given that the property may well have been the last site large enough for a community, freshwater swimming area, the City recieved a waiver to purchase the property and sought reimbursement through this grant. The lake is an aquifer-fed kettle; 66.8 acres in size, and has 1.3 miles of shoreline. This grant funded only the acqusition of the property, development of the site by the City of Olympia will occur in future phases.