Lake Gwyn Park brings watershed benefits to Wahneta
On September 4th, members of the Stormwater Technical Advisory Committee of the Board of County Commissioners attended a walk-through field inspection of the Lake Gwyn Surface Water Restoration Project, located at 204 First Street East, Wahneta.
More information about the Lake Gwyn project was detailed in a May 2015 article by Tom Palmer in The Ledger:
What was for years a dry lake bed drained and bisected by a Depression-era drainage canal is gradually being restored to a natural wetlands system that will send cleaner water to the Peace River, provide more wildlife habitat and give area residents a place to take a stroll through nature.
By fall, new wetlands habitat will be forming as water from the Wahneta Farms drainage canal is diverted back to the lake, where it will be treated before being released downstream.
The restored wetlands habitat is expected to attract wildlife and the berm enclosing the project will provide visitors with a scenic view along the 1.5-mile walking path that will circle that portion of the project.
An observation pier adjacent to the trail will complement the park.
Adjacent to the wetlands area will be a soccer field, new for the community, said Jeff Spence, Polk's director of parks and natural resources.
"We've been planning this for close to a decade; it's great to see it come together,'' he said.