Tucked away south of Elm Creek and just west of Washington Avenue is one of Ioa’s best-kept secrets, a recreational gem, if you will.
A still-unnamed park area offers a serene area for picnickers, fisherman or other outdoors enthusiasts. Large trees offer abundant shade, and the onset of spring has given the area a fresh coat of green.
Now all it needs is people to visit.
Members of the Community Involvement Task Force/PRIDE Committee have taken up the baton to see the area improved even further.
Last year, after huddling with former City Administrator Judy Brigham, the committee paid for concrete picnic tables — thus making them impervious to flooding in case Elm Creek exceeds its banks — and there are plans for other amenities.
The area has been largely ignored by the public, for a number of reasons, CITF/PRIDE members noted.
Getting to the spot requires visitors to drive south of town on State Street, through Bassett and back north along Washington. And then, visitors must climb over a cable attached to a series of fence posts, presumably to prevent folks from driving onto the grass. The cable, however, gives most the impression the area is off limits, Iola City Administrator Carl Slaugh said.
They hope to see that change.
Committee members gathered with Slaugh and Assistant City Administrator Corey Schinstock Friday about ways to improve the area.
Mike Ford, CITF/PRIDE member, tossed out a couple of ideas, such as raising funds for a shelter to cover the picnic tables, or at the least trash receptacles.
Schinstock said the city could look at removing a portion of the cable to allow easier entrance.
Friday’s meeting also featured Iolan Jim Smith, who spoke about the area’s history.
In Iola’s earliest years, with Washington doubling as the main north-south highway through town, the area had been developed by the Iola Kiwanis Club as a roadside park and campsite for visitors. It was known, Smith said, as the Iola Kiwanis Tourist Camp.
Smith also pointed to the remnants of a pair of stone columns, part of the park’s arched entryway. He suggested CITF/PRIDE take up an effort to rebuild the arch.
Smith also has offered to create a marker to inform visitors abou the park’s history. Slaugh invited the committee to bring their ideas to the Iola City Council.
They’d also like to hear from the community about other ideas.
The group’s long-term goals would be to see a walking bridge to span Elm Creek, making the area easier to access. The bridge also would connect the area to the nearby South Washington Park, which was developed by the city as a recreational area, although many avoid it because of the preponderance poison ivy.
