Contact:  Tom Hacker, Public Information Officer, 962-2302
              Janet Meisel-Burns, Senior Parks Planner, 962-2451

Loveland’s Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park for many decades had been a venue for countless weddings, family reunions, graduation parties, and quiet picnics for couples and families.

Nearly all the features of the park, 10 miles west of Loveland in Big Thompson Canyon, were wiped away in the September 2013 Flood. Now, City parks planners are gathering suggestions from residents on how restoration of Viestenz-Smith should proceed.

This much is certain: The park will never be what it was, almost as if an urban park with lawns, sidewalks and planting beds, had been dropped into a mountain canyon. Rebuilding it as it was would be irresponsible, given what we know about the Big Thompson River’s past and future.
But new plans for recovery of the park open opportunities for a more native, natural and resilient public space that still affords access to the river and other natural amenities.

Click HERE to go to our Open City Hall portal to view options for park restoration, and to register your opinions on how the new Viestenz-Smith might look and feel. 

Resident feedback will be collected through May 15th.