By Aspen Perry   |   [email protected]

On Tuesday, Sept. 12, Holladay residents attended the Knudsen Park open house to learn more about the future nature park, as well as provide feedback on what features they would like to have available. 

Hughes General Contractors displayed park ideas on boards throughout the room, along with colored dot stickers for residents to vote for the park features they wished to see, including the recently trending concept of “hammocking.” 

Though both boards featuring the hammock garden had more red dots than green (red representing dislikes, yellow representing neutral and green representing likes), the hammock garden was a fan favorite for the younger crowd in attendance.

“I liked the idea of the hammocks for sure, I would love to use those,” James VanDam, 15-year-old Holladay resident said. 

In addition to being in favor of a hammock area, James hoped the park would have some type of water feature and a bike station. 

James’ brother Joseph, age 13, was also in attendance, and after some time studying the conceptual site plan, Joseph placed a Post-it recommendation to fix potholes on the bike trails. 

“(The potholes) are big enough to make you crash,” Joseph said. 

Recommendations and inquiries for bike stations were mentioned by those in attendance and on the open house Facebook event page. 

When asked if they would like to have meadows for exploring or a space with grass that could be utilized, Joseph said he preferred the meadow. 

“I like to see the different types of flowers and grasses,” Joseph said. 

Eric Lyman, landscape architect with Hughes General Contractors, discussed with Joseph the question park planners were having on whether the meadow space would be best left as meadow or something that could be utilized. Joseph said, “It’s gotta stay.”

Though Joseph did not think the meadow would be as fun if it were roped off, he liked the idea of having educational elements near the meadow for park patrons to learn about the ecosystem while enjoying the sights and floral smells of a meadow. 

In speaking with another group of attendees, Lyman discussed how Hughes was considering adding an educational and interactive element to the water feature, by way of having it mimic an irrigation system. 

“Irrigation is a big part of why the valley is green. We’re thinking of taking an old head gate... and hand pumps, and doing something fun,” Lyman said.

Another feature being considered is a small amphitheater with the potential to be used for education groups. 

“Nothing big, might be a classroom size of about 20–25 people,” Lyman said. 

The park may have certain trail elements that might not meet accessibility standards, but accessibility is currently being reviewed.

As mentioned in the August issue of the Holladay City Journal, Knudsen Park will be on eight acres of land directly south of the corner of Holladay Boulevard and 6200 South.

Holladay City was awarded $2.7 million from the Salt Lake County ZAP Recreation Bond to develop the site into a public recreation amenity.

Both the city and Hughes General Contractors plan for the park to maintain existing natural amenities, while highlighting the unique history of Knudsen Flour Mill, in a space with recreation for all ages to enjoy.

Construction on Knudsen Park is scheduled to begin this fall. Pictures, schedule and contact information regarding Knudsen Park can be found at Knudsenpark.com, as well as the City of Holladay’s website.