PHOTO COURTESY OF EVANSTON PARKS AND RECREATION DISTRICT
CONSERVATION
Evanston Parks and Recreation District staff envision Bear Meadows as a space for active recreation that is configurable to a variety of needs based on the demands of the community.
Revitalizing Parkland in Evanston, Wyoming By Lindsay Hogeboom
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or nearly 10 years, a six-acre grassy field, known as Bear Meadows, has existed in the heart of downtown Evanston, Wyoming. The field — which sits just to the west of the Bear Ice Ponds, next to the Bear River and shares walking trails with a nearby Bear River State Park — is beloved by the community for its large natural area and convenient location. However, a handful of environmental challenges currently hinder the ability to use the land to its full potential. Park and recreation professionals at Evanston Parks and Recreation District (EPRD) are working to transform the underutilized space into a year-round outdoor recreational area for their community.
out cross-country ski tracks at Bear Meadows, “but it is difficult with the swinging weather to make a quality track for cross-country skiing,” says Kim Larson, recreation manager for EPRD. “We have all these skis at the rec center to rent out for people to go play outside, but they’re just sitting there because there’s no snow.”
Site Challenges
Land Management Strategies
In December 2020, EPRD staff met with representatives from NRPA and Sasaki, a leading global design firm, to discuss the environmental challenges of the site and potential land management solutions. During the summer season, the biggest site challenge is the ability to effectively irrigate the land due to soil conditions, reduced annual precipitation and extended drought. “The drainage is probably our biggest issue,” says Kev26 Parks & Recreation
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in Munoz, parks maintenance worker for EPRD. “The main thing is that [the field] sits out in the open all day long, constantly in the sun, so it dries out if you don’t get enough water on it. But at other times, you can drown it and it won’t drain either.” During winter, another environmental challenge has arisen over recent years due to increasingly extreme and consistent weather fluctuations: diminished snowpack. EPRD staff hope to be able to lay
Despite these environmental challenges, EPRD staff committed to revitalizing the site expressed big ideas for what the area could be, including a space for active recreation that is configurable to a variety of needs based on the demands of the community. “We are trying to keep it improving and actually growing,” says Munoz. “I would hope to see it…able to be used year-round.” To
