Silverwood Park celebrates grand opening on Sept. 26

A first-time visit to the metro area’s newest regional park elicits a storm of adjectives: “spectacular,” “gorgeous” and “restful” come easily to mind.

Friends enjoy a trail walk by Silver Lake.

And now more Twin Cities residents can see it for themselves at Silverwood Park’s grand opening on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Featured events that day include demonstrations and hands-on activities (clay throwing, paper making, weaving, spinning and fish printing) and performances by In the Heart of the Beast Puppet Theatre in the morning and afternoon.

Visitors also can explore a new art gallery, café, amphitheater, classrooms, and long trails through field and forest, past Silver Lake.

Capping the day, mandolin virtuoso Peter Ostroushko will perform with renowned Twin Cities-based piano accompanist Dan Chouinard from 6:30-8:30 p.m.

New park focused on arts education

Silverwood Park, located at 2500 County Road E in St. Anthony, just north of Minneapolis, is on the site of a former Salvation Army Camp. The Metropolitan Council was instrumental in helping acquire the park land and adding it to the regional park system a few years ago.

Park facilities and programs are administered by Three Rivers Park District, one of 10 partners in the regional parks system. The special focus of Silverwood Park is “nature interpretation integrated with arts programming.”

The centerpiece of the park is an elegant new visitor center overlooking 2,300 feet of shoreline on Silver Lake. Incorporating various elements of green design, the center features a new art gallery, great hall, classrooms, coffee café and large outdoor patio.

Park grounds include a 20-acre mature upland forest, accessible paved and nonpaved waking trails, and an outdoor amphitheater that seats 250, with space for additional lawn seating. Future plans call for two fishing piers.

Great room at Silver Lake visitor center

Three visitors are silhouetted in windows of the Great Room in the Silverwood Regional Park Visitor Center.

To help facilitate the park’s focus on arts education, there are two new stand-alone classrooms that are already in use for a full range of arts and crafts programming such as pottery, Halloween folk art, cooking, music, painting and more.

Located along the park’s trail system, six “art circles” or art installations will be initiated by local and regional artists to engage visitors with hands-on art creations.