Arvada gets $7 million grant for Gold Strike Park makeover

The City of Arvada has much to celebrate after being awarded a $7.3 million grant to help transform its beloved Gold Strike Park.

The revitalization effort, courtesy of the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership, will include a nature playground, water play area, bouldering feature, creek crossings, pedestrian bridge, event lawn, pavilion, and pollinator garden while protecting and enhancing environmentally sensitive areas along Ralston Creek.

Managed by the National Park Service and funded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the nationally competitive ORLP program provides matching grants of up to 50% of total project costs to assist communities with little to no access to outdoor recreation opportunities in urban areas, according to the ORLP website. Funds can be used to acquire and/or develop public parks and other outdoor recreation spaces or substantially renovate them.

“Securing $7.3 million in funding for Gold Strike Park is a remarkable opportunity for our city,” Arvada Mayor Lauren Simpson said in a press statement. “This grant will help us create a dynamic and welcoming space that honors the legacy of the site while improving it for families, neighbors and visitors who wish to gather, explore and connect with nature.”

Gold Strike Park sits at the confluence of Clear Creek and Ralston Creek in Arvada and is listed on the State Registrar of Historic Places as the site where Lewis Ralston first discovered gold in 1850.

The project builds on the city’s previous 2022 redesign efforts, which included extensive public feedback and sought to balance recreational ideals with environmental preservation.

The City of Arvada finalized site plans for the 7.6-acre site in March 2024.

“As our city grows and as we reinvest back into our neighborhoods, it’s critical that we prioritize these outdoor spaces, including how we harmonize recreation with environmental stewardship,” Simpson said. “We are incredibly grateful to Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the National Park Service for their support of this incredible project, and we look forward to seeing the positive community impacts this investment will have both now and for generations to come."

City officials are hopeful the additional funding helps unlock Gold Strike Park’s full potential as Arvada’s next premier park.

“The City of Arvada is honored and thrilled to be selected for ORLP funding,” said Maki Boyle, a senior landscape architect with the City of Arvada and the Gold Strike Park project manager. “This grant will help bring to life a long-awaited project that is decades in the making. The future of Gold Strike Park will transform and energize an under-utilized space to better serve and enhance the lives of the surrounding community and will also commemorate this historically significant site.”