Just months after its ribbon-cutting, Kansas's newest state park is already growing. Lehigh Portland State Park in Iola, which opened on the site of a former limestone quarry, is in line for two rental cabins and a new boat ramp, dock and parking area, according to the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.
Lehigh Portland became Kansas's 29th state park when it opened to the public, built on land once home to a cement-company quarry that operated until 1970, according to cjonline.com. The park debuted with 14 miles of multipurpose trails, a lake for swimming and paddling, and new campgrounds, including 28 utility campsites with water, electrical and sewer hookups. KDWP held a ribbon-cutting for the park's new visitor center on Aug. 12. The park also has a four-pod shower house.
At the time of that opening, a boat ramp was still under construction, and visitors were directed to park at the campgrounds and carry canoes, kayaks or inflatables down to the lake's swimming areas instead, per the same account. Kansas state officials now plan two additional projects at the park following the visitor center's debut, according to the Kansas City Star, which reported on the newly identified cabin and boating-access work.
Cabins Built With Help From Community College Students
The cabin project calls for two rental cabins at Lehigh Portland, built through a partnership between KDWP and Neosho County Community College, the Star reports. Construction program students at the college will gain hands-on experience building the cabins, while the Kansas State Parks Division will reimburse all material costs. The cabin project is estimated to cost $200,000 and carries a medium priority designation, with work scheduled for the current fiscal year.
That kind of cabin investment has a track record elsewhere in the state park system. The Kansas Wildscape Foundation says its cabin program has grown from an initial 2002 grant and loan into more than 70 cabins placed at Kansas state parks and public lands, according to kansaswildscape.org. The foundation says those cabins now generate more than $1 million in annual revenue for KDWP.
A similar calculation is playing out closer to Topeka. Shawnee County commissioners voted 2-1 on March 12 to approve construction of two new rental cabins at Lake Shawnee's campground for $402,000, according to ksnt.com. Those cabins, measuring 755 and 590 square feet with private bathrooms, are funded through a KDWP grant along with the county's campground revolving fund and building maintenance fund; the county's parks director expects them to pay for themselves within five years.
Boat Ramp Project Addresses a Gap at the New Park
Lehigh Portland currently lacks adequate boating infrastructure for visitors, according to the Star's reporting, which is what the second project aims to fix. The boating-access project will establish motorboat access, a courtesy dock and parking for trailered vehicles, and it carries a high priority designation with work also scheduled for the current fiscal year. It's estimated to cost $120,000, with 75% funded through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Sport Fish Restoration Motor Boat Access Grant Program and the remaining 25% covered by state funds.
Both projects are part of a much larger wish list. KDWP identified 129 projects in its five-year capital improvement budget, which the agency presented to state lawmakers on September 22, with all projects combined estimated to cost $138 million, according to the budget document cited in the Star's report. That plan spans repairs and improvements to roads, parking areas, boat ramps and docks, nature trails, lighting, signs and accessibility statewide, intended to protect public access to parks and waterbodies across Kansas.
KDWP prioritizes projects based on public safety and accessibility needs, and Stuart Schrag said many of the agency's projects qualify as high priority simply because its infrastructure meets that criteria. Schrag said the sheer project count reflects the size, variety and geographic reach of KDWP's infrastructure, which spans 29 state parks, 177 lakes and wildlife areas, more than 300 public waterbodies and five nature centers, according to ksoutdoors.gov.
Whether visitors can currently fish in Lehigh Lake remains unsettled. Cjonline.com reported that fishing wasn't yet permitted as of its August visit, while a separate blog account posted in September said it had confirmed with KDWP that fishing was in fact allowed. Anglers hoping to cast a line at the new park should check directly with the agency before heading out.
