One of the many things that are in the works in downtown Franklin is the construction of a “whitewater park,” which is being called Mill City Park. On April 12, an informational meeting was held at the main office of Franklin Savings Bank, which has provided early funding for the project.

Marty Parichand, Executive Director of Mill City Park, and owner of Outdoor New England in downtown Franklin, gave the audience of over 40 people some of the history of the project and some details on the first phase of the park’s development. Whitewater parks have been constructed in several places in the United States, but Mill City Park will be the first and only one in New England.

Parichand and Engineer Mike Harvey of Recreation Engineering & Planning based in Salida, CO explained that a whitewater park is much more than kayaking. Of course, the whitewater features that will be constructed as well as the existing class III waters running from the Northfield Town Line to downtown Franklin will draw kayakers and paddlers from around the region. They expect, however, that the majority of the people who will use the park will be everyday people and families who will not be paddling, but will be walking, running, picnicking or enjoying other activities along the river and trails. While it may become the norm in the future to see people carrying kayaks on their shoulders on the sidewalks in downtown Franklin, the park is expected to be a place for everyone to come and enjoy the river.

Currently, those that do paddle the river put in at Cross Mill Road on the Northfield Town line and make the one mile run to the take out point at Trestle View Park. This poses problems for transportation of paddlers and boats back to the starting point.  After completion of the initial phases of the park, it is expected that paddlers will be able to park in downtown Franklin and enter the water nearby. They will be able to paddle upstream a short distance and use the newly constructed “whitewater features” over and over again to practice skills and to enjoy the thrill of the features and then exit the river at the same place where they entered. Another objective is to design the features in the river so that they will be usable even when the water is at its lower summer levels.

The Winnipesaukee River Trail runs along the western bank of the river, which has high, steep banks, making river access difficult. The opposite side where the park will be developed, has lower banks which will provide opportunities for folks to be near to and have access to the water for many types of activities.

Recreation Engineering and Planning has been on site to evaluate how the park can be developed and is starting the design process. VHB a national company which has an office in Bedford, NH will be working closely with the design engineers and Mill City Park to obtain the permits required by the Department of Environmental Services to move the work along.

The engineering and design for the park is no small task and the permitting process could be even more daunting, but organizers are hopeful that work could begin on the project before the end of 2019. For more information on Mill City Park visit: www.MillCityPark.com or look for it on Facebook.