T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY Lonnie Hogeland Sr., left, pictured with his son Levi, right, is the new owner of BPW Park at 407 E. Marion St. after the Marshalltown city council unanimously approved the sale of the property during Monday night’s meeting. Hogeland plans to improve the park and change the name to “Hogie’s Playground” while keeping it open to the general public going forward.

While selling off a public park to a private citizen often draws consternation about the loss of recreational opportunities for the children in a neighborhood, those who have enjoyed BPW Park at 407 E. Marion St. need not worry.

During Monday night’s meeting, the city council voted unanimously to sell the property to Lonnie Hogeland Sr., the owner of L Hogeland Auto Plaza, who plans to keep it as a park, add more equipment and incorporate some sort of a tribute to his late father and his late son, Lonnie Hogeland Jr., who passed away in 1998.

Hogeland was the highest of three bidders on the property with an offer of $1,202.22, and Councilor Mike Ladehoff called the outcome “the best of both worlds.”

“Lonnie is planning on this still being a park, and the city won’t be mowing it anymore. So actually, I think this is really good. Lonnie’s got plans for it, and it’ll be interesting to see what he does. Thank you Lonnie,” Ladehoff said.

As he stepped to the speaking podium, Hogeland said he had “major plans” for the park.

“I’ve got some ideas that’ll get implemented, and a lot of people have told me ‘You can’t get rid of that park. We use it, we use it, we use it.’ So my son does lawn care, sorry for him,” he joked.

A motion to approve the sale passed unanimously, and Mayor/Acting City Administrator Joel Greer told Hogeland he’d get “a good deal” on the equipment already at the park. The property was initially difficult for the city to sell because of the sanitary and storm sewer lines that run through it, which would have made developing it residentially more difficult, so Hogeland hopes the space can continue to serve its previous purpose, albeit under new ownership.

On Tuesday, Lonnie Hogeland Sr. and his son Levi met up with the T-R at the park they will soon officially own, and the elder Hogeland noted that while he didn’t grow up playing at the park (which is located near Bruin Manufacturing), he has driven past it “a million times” and wanted to see something good come of it.

One of his major ambitions is to place soccer goals in the open grass portion of the park along with trimming the trees, spraying the weeds and adding a slab of concrete for a picnic area. The new name, he declared, will be “Hogie’s Playground,” which shouldn’t cause much of a stir as the Business and Professional Women (BPW) Club that the park is currently named after is no longer active in Marshalltown.

As soon as he officially takes ownership, Hogeland plans to get the ball rolling on his improvements. Hogie’s Playground will be open to the public with rules posted in English and Spanish at both entries.

“The main rule at the beginning will be that you’ve got to smile. You’ve gotta have fun,” he said. “It is gonna be fun. No one else takes the initiative to do what I did, and everyone tells me ‘Don’t do that.’ Why not?”

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.