by Dennis Dalman
Sartell’s Watab Park will be closed – perhaps all summer long – because of the ambitious reconstruction project for CR 1 (Riverside Avenue) just east of the park.
The closure will be necessary because that park will become a temporary storage and staging area for the heavy equipment required for the project.
The closing or partial closings of Watab Park could last as long as April right through late fall.
The project, which involves Stearns County also, is a reconstruction of CR 1 from Sartell Street to 12th Street N. The many inter-related improvements include sanitary sewer, water main, storm sewer, sidewalks, trails, lighting, riverbank restorations, a river look-out area and additions to Watab Park and Veterans Park (across the street from Watab Park).
At the March 14 city-council meeting, it was noted the closure date will be announced in the near future. During construction, there will also be some disruptions to traffic flow.