Though the expansive views of Lake Lehigh may have distracted from the guest speakers’ remarks, Wednesday’s official opening of the Lehigh Portland Visitor Center was a long-awaited success.
Multiple officials with the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks were on hand to commemorate Kansas’ newest state park and laud locals’ efforts to turn the former industrial park into a wildlife adventure.
But no one could tell the story better than Iola’s Mary Kay Heard, board chairman of Iola Industries, who recalled that after the organization bought the abandoned Lehigh Portland Cement Company and its surrounding properties in 1971, they couldn’t give it away.
Literally.
“We tried to give it to the City of Iola. We tried to give it to Allen County,” she said.
Trouble was, the organization’s goals for the land and the quarry’s pristine waters were beyond the scope of local entities.
It was only at the state level that the resources — and the vision — were great enough to see it through.
“And what you’re seeing here today is so much more than any of us ever imagined,” Heard said.
The state park includes a 138-acre lake, miles of biking and walking trails, 28 campsites with utilities, restrooms, showers, and a visitor center that can double as an event center.
“For Iola Industries, this gift ranks at the very, very top of anything we’ve ever done for this community,” said Heard. “We gave this land to the state for only one reason. So that it could be shared by all people.”
Heard said the park matches the organization’s vision of making “Iola and Allen County the best place in rural Kansas for business, industry and quality of life. This is quality of life. This vision is the heart and soul of Iola Industries and the very reason for our existence.”
Steve French, mayor of Iola, noted the organization’s gift of 360 acres “was no small beans. This was a $2 million donation to the state,” he said.
“If Iola Industries were a publicly traded company, it would be a pretty good investment,” French said of the 71-year-old organization. “Everything they’ve touched has been quite successful.”
French also recalled his days as a Scout and how camping was his favorite activity.
“How exciting it will be for today’s Scouts to come right here in our backyard to camp out,” French said.
French said Lehigh Portland is a chance “to put out our best red carpet.”
