Lexington wants input on new plan for this ‘hidden gem’ park
Coldstream Park is tucked into the University of Kentucky’s Coldstream Research Park near Interstate 75 and Interstate 64.
Many in Lexington have driven by the 224-acre park that includes a section of the popular Legacy Trail and not realized it’s there.
Lexington city officials want to change that.
A new master plan for the park, much of which is in a flood plain, is underway. And city officials want the public’s insights on what they would like in the park.
Due to the flood plains in the park, paved or high-maintenance sports fields are likely not going to be an option, said Michelle Kosieniak, superintendent of planning and design for the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.
The Cane Run watershed — which feeds the Royal Springs Aquifer — provides Scott County’s drinking water and is also located within the park. That also means the city will have to be sensitive and intentional about what it puts in the park, said Demetria Kimball Mehlhorn, a program manager with the city’s Department of Environmental Services.
Department of Environmental Services is helping oversee the new master plan.
The city acquired the property in 1991. A master plan was conducted in 1999.
But a lot has changed since 1999. Recreation changes over time, and the area has changed too.
Now there are apartments in Coldstream Research Park. There are also several neighborhoods nearby.
It’s time for the master plan to be updated, said Kosieniak.
In addition to a section of the popular 12-mile Legacy Trail, the area also has a popular dog park. Trails in the park have also been used to host various 5K runs.
It has a bathroom for Legacy Trail users near a large wet weather storage tank that was placed in the park as part of the city’s consent decree with the Environmental Protection Agency.
But the remaining acreage is largely open green space.
“It’s really a hidden gem,” said Paul Hooper, a spokesman for the parks and recreation department.
Kimball Mehlhorn said the park would be ideal for environmental education or using the green space to teach kids and visitors about things like watersheds.
“The location right off the interstate could make this a destination park,” Kimball Mehlhorn said.
The park also has a rich equine history. It’s part of the former Coldstream Farm. First known as McGrathiana, the farm was the home of Aristides, the first winner of the Kentucky Derby, ridden by famed Black jockey Oliver Lewis.
Residents have until Aug. 31 to fill out a survey at lexingtonky.gov/coldstream-park. A draft of the master plan will be presented to the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council in the fall, Kimball Mehlhorn said.
