Park project and amphitheater a source of pride

It’s exciting to see phase 2 of the redevelopment project at Armory Park making great progress late this summer.

The project – known as the Constitution Park Project by funding agencies since that was the name of the park when planning and funding was being formulated – has been done in two phases.

Phase 1 was the new splash pad, playground equipment, skate park and restrooms. Phase 2 is the walking path, reconstructed softball field, walking path lighting, sprinkler system and, the most exciting part of the project, in our opinion, the amphitheater.

The Town of Lovell has been talking about an amphitheater for decades. Then councilwoman Dorothy Nelson pushed for an amphitheater back in the 1990s, hoping to build it in a Main Street park, perhaps the park next to Lovell Drug or where the downtown veterans mural is located.

We loved the idea, though not the location. Anyone who has been to an event at the veterans mural park knows that traffic noise can drown out just about any speaker, and it would be the same for music performances.

Unfortunately, the project fell by the wayside until the Town of Lovell put together the Constitution Park Project. This multifaceted project was the brainchild of the Lovell mayor, town council and administration, most especially town administrator Jed Nebel, with the assistance of some local private businesses that donated materials and labor to the cause.

This is the kind of project that can be a real draw to the community with the state-of-the-art skate park, the splash pad and the amphitheater. The quiet location of the park is a perfect location for the amphitheater, and we can envision numerous concerts, speakers and the return of events like Shakespeare in the Park. This talented community deserves such a venue.

And now we ask what’s next. There is plenty of room in the eastern end of the park where the amphitheater is located, and we can see a future with pickleball courts next to the existing basketball courts or a dog park on the southeast end of the park. It would also be great to see the walking path extended up onto the hill, as was proposed a number of years ago.

Hats off to the Town of Lovell and the leaders who made this project possible, those with the vision for the project and the ability to write the grants that made the project possible. It will be great to see the park fully developed in the near future, and with that will come an even more livable community.

--David Peck