04/10/2026
The Idaho Recreation and Park Association has named Travers Park the state's 2026 Outstanding Park or Facility. Major additions to Travers by the City Of Sandpoint the past three years have included the inclusive playground and splashpad (pictured), the expanded Concrete Lake Skate Park, the James E. Russell Sports Center and the Tiny Woods bike skills park. Press release below; the IRPA website is at https://irpa.wildapricot.org/ .
PRESS RELEASE
City of Sandpoint’s Travers Park Project Receives 2026 IRPA Outstanding Park or Facility Award
SANDPOINT, Idaho — The City of Sandpoint is proud to announce that the Travers Park Project has been selected to receive the 2026 Idaho Recreation and Park Association (IRPA) Award for Outstanding Park or Facility. The award recognizes the successful transformation of Travers Park into a vibrant, multi-generational community recreation destination that reflects years of public investment, philanthropy, volunteerism, and broad community partnership. The award nomination highlighted the James E. Russell Sports Center, inclusive playground and splash pad, skatepark expansion, and Tiny Woods Bike Skills Park as major components of the overall project.
The Travers Park improvements represent more than $10 million in coordinated park and recreation investment completed between 2023 and 2025. Key project elements include the 37,000-square-foot James E. Russell Sports Center, a 15,000-square-foot inclusive playground and splash pad, an expanded and lighted skatepark, and the Tiny Woods Bike Skills Park. Together, these improvements have expanded year-round recreation opportunities, improved accessibility, and strengthened Travers Park’s role as one of Sandpoint’s most important public gathering places.
What makes this recognition especially meaningful is the degree to which Travers Park was shaped and strengthened by the Sandpoint community itself. The project was not simply a municipal capital project. It was a citywide effort made possible by residents, donors, nonprofits, local businesses, volunteers, user groups, and public partners who came together around a shared vision for the future of the park. The nomination materials specifically recognize broad community collaboration as a defining feature of the project’s success.
Community organizations played a direct and lasting role in helping bring the park to life. Pend Oreille Pedalers led the effort to create Tiny Woods Bike Skills Park, fully funding that facility through grants, donations, and volunteer labor, creating a safe and fun place for young riders to build confidence and skills. The Bonner County Skatepark Association also played an important role in supporting the skatepark expansion, helping strengthen one of Sandpoint’s most beloved youth recreation amenities. The East Bonner County Library and United Way of North Idaho helped support the interactive story trail surrounding the new inclusive playground, adding another family-oriented feature that encourages both literacy and outdoor play. These partnerships helped ensure the project would serve a broad cross-section of the community in meaningful ways.
Local businesses and service organizations also stepped forward with in-kind contributions, financial support, materials, and expertise that expanded the impact of the project well beyond what public dollars alone could achieve. Support from the Sandpoint Rotary Club, HMH Engineering, the Selkirk Association of Realtors, and Skyright Roofing helped make construction of the new picnic shelter possible. Other partners contributed to improvements throughout the park, including work associated with the refurbished baseball fields and batting cages, landscaping, site features, and other community-serving amenities. The nomination materials also recognize support from organizations and businesses including the Kalispel Tribe, Idaho Forest Group, Peak Construction, Backcountry Electric, and others that helped turn the broader Travers Park vision into reality.
The City also recognizes the leadership of former Parks Development Manager Maeve Nevins-Lavtar, who served as project manager and oversaw the Travers Park effort over roughly three years from inception to completion. Her leadership helped guide the project through planning, design, public engagement, coordination with consultants and contractors, construction challenges, and final delivery. The award nomination reflects the extraordinary complexity of the effort and the disciplined management required to bring multiple interconnected projects to completion while preserving and enhancing the park’s long-standing role in community life.
“This award is a tremendous honor for Sandpoint,” said Mayor Jeremy Grimm. “Travers Park is a powerful example of what can happen when a community rallies around a shared vision. This recognition belongs not just to the City, but to the many residents, volunteers, donors, partners, and businesses who helped make these improvements possible.”
The Travers Park project was catalyzed by a historic philanthropic gift from Jim and Ginny Russell and shaped through extensive public engagement, inclusive design, and a commitment to long-term stewardship. Today, the park stands as a lasting example of how community partnership, thoughtful planning, and local generosity can create public spaces that serve families, youth, and residents of all ages and abilities for generations to come.
The award will be presented at the IRPA annual conference on April 20-23 in Twin Falls.
