North Dam Park may have to close down

Officials for the barely funded public agency currently responsible for managing the park that holds major events in the area said Tuesday they may have to close it down.

North Dam Park, which is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation but managed by the Coulee Area Park and Recreation District (CAPRD) is the venue for events like Colorama, Run the Dam, summer softball and baseball games, a skate park, the Gehrke Windmills display, countless private events, and more.

But CAPRD commissioners Brian Warneke and Kevin Porch said Tuesday that USBR funds that had been helping sustain the park are gone, CAPRD has barely enough money to maintain the park through August, and they’re asking community members to come to a meeting on the issue later this month.

That meeting will happen Wednesday, June 22, at 6:30 p.m. at the old middle school on Federal Avenue in Grand Coulee in the former teacher’s lounge.

The Star will publish more details in the June 15 issue.