(Jasper, Indiana) – The City of Jasper held a grou
ndbreaking ceremony today at the site of The Parklands of Jasper – a 75-acre nature-based destination park in the center of the community.
Mayor Terry Seitz described today as “A fu
n day! A time to celebrate three key strengths of Jasper: Community, opportunity and collaboration while breaking ground on a future destination for residents and visitors. Seitz said, “The Parklands is the symbol for the way Jasper gets things done through a combination of citizens, government and benefactors. In fact, we’ve coined a new economic development term which describes how so many ventures are underway in Jasper: It’s P4, which stands for Public Private Philanthropic Partnership.”
The Parklands of Jasper evolved from the city’s purchase of the former Jasper Country Club golf course in 2013 for just over one million dollars which was borrowed from the city’s Rainy Day Fund. That money has since been restored to the fund. Through the contributions of benefactors, the State of Indiana Bicentennial Nature Trust and the Indiana Heritage Trust, an additional 25 acres adjacent to the former golf course was added last year. The Jasper Common Council authorized the balance of the funding leading to the construction currently underway.
The Parklands of Jasper will feature a 10-foot wide, two mile multi-use trail, water features, ponds, a pavilion and multiple exercise stations. Future features have been identified in the plans.
