Bobby McGarraugh Park

General Location:

Located off Cherry St. between S St. and P St.

General Description:

Bobby McGarraugh Park sits in a South-facing depression that shelters users from the wind. It now includes a play area, picnic shelter, young children’s play structures and a seasonal restroom.

History:

The 2.03-acre park site, formerly called Cherry Street Park, was renamed in 1996 to honor the late City Parks employee Bobby McGarraugh. It was once a city-owned gravel pit. Council minutes report on grading, top-soil distribution and playground equipment on 16 October 1973 and note an area planned for tennis courts. The 1975 Parks Plan recommended development and a grant proposal was submitted to Washington State Interagency Commission for Outdoor Recreation (IAC) in 1976 for development funding. Council minutes (17 August 1976) note that IAC required that unopened street rights of way for Q St. between Cherry St. and Willow St. and Rose St. between P St. and R St. be vacated within the month for the proposal to be considered. Although this was done promptly by Council, there is no record that an IAC grant was received for the park. New play equipment was installed in 2010, and a new picnic shelter was built in 2011.

Total Acreage:

2.03 acres