Refurbishment of downtown La Crosse park could begin next spring

Another park rehab appears on the way in La Crosse. This one, downtown.

Burns Park on Main Street across from the Main Library branch has been long neglected, says Jacqueline Marcou, who represents that area on the city council. But neighbors, businesses and the library are pushing for a renovation.

“I think everyone’s on board. Everyone wants to see it get kind of a facelift,” she said. “It’s a great asset to the community and it’s been kind of ignored for a really long time.”

While Marcou envisions playground equipment in the park, she believes there should remain plenty of green space for just having a picnic, tossing a frisbee or simply hanging out.

“We really want to be thoughtful about how much we put in the park,” Marcou said, adding that other likely additions would be picnic tables and chess boards.

The city’s parks department wants $350,000 for the project that could break ground next spring.