The Lion’s Park splashpad officially opened on Friday, June 18, following two years of anticipation in the community.

Parents, grandparents, kids and pets were all in attendance when the Kearney Chamber of Commerce kicked off the opening with a ribbon cutting at 9:30.

Mayor Randy Pogue spoke at the event and thanked all the businesses and individuals who contributed to the renovation. Parks and Recreation Director Eric Marshall also thanked the people involved in the design and building of the splashpad.

The majority of the park has been refurbished with new playground equipment, new seating areas, an expanded parking area, a new bandstand, and updated bathrooms and picnic shelters. The major attraction to the park is the fully functional splash pad.

In the beginning Kearney Enrichment Council members knew they wanted a splashpad, but didn’t know where to begin.

“We had enough support; we had enough gumption to get going; we had a design in place, and now let’s get the parks board involved and the city council involved,” according to Jason Pierret, who helped get the project started.

They met with professional park planner Steve Casey and visited with other cities with splashpads to see how to get started. Casey and landscape designer Larry Reynolds helped with the design and renovation of the park. Casey also helped find a grant through the Department of Natural Resources to bring in funding.

“Obviously the focal part of this is the splashpad,” Casey said. “We wanted to really design the park around that, and create spaces that can be gathering spaces where families can come out.”

“I’m really excited to see this project come into fruition,” Reynolds said. “It’s been a great rejuvenation of Lion’s Park. It’s something that the community has looked forward to for some time now and I hope we’ve delivered on that promise.”

Funds to pay for the park renovation were also raised by the Kearney Enrichment Council. The entire Lions Park renovation project was budgeted for $1.2 Million.

The splashpad was officially turned on and open to the public with Mayor Pogue and several children in the community taking the first drenching from the big bucket in the center.

“This is what it’s all about,” exclaimed Pogue. “I’m super proud of everyone who helped get this completed. Hearing all the kids laugh, yell, and having fun filled my heart with joy!”

Watch Kearney Chamber of Commerce video of the event here .

KPGZ News - Brian Watts contributed to this story