Chinook Pool and Park Project Awarded $1 Million from Montana Land Water Conservation Fund Grant
The Friends of the Pool and Park Foundation are extremely excited to announce that the City of Chinook has been awarded a $1,097,000 Grant from the Montana Land and Water Conservation Fund through Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. This grant will be used for the Chinook Pool and Park Rehabilitation Project.
“This incredible grant will allow us to continue towards our end goal of complete rehabilitation of the Pool and Park Complex” states Heather DePriest, President of the Friends of the Pool and Park Foundation in Chinook. “Our entire Board of Directors have worked tirelessly the past 5 years to accomplish that exact goal, and we are beyond grateful for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for this incredible contribution towards the project.”
According to the Book called “Chinook, the First 100 Years”, the current Chinook Municipal Swimming Pool had its grand opening in 1976 and was built with a Fish Wildlife and Parks Grant and matching funds from a bond issue. The Chinook Lion’s Club furnished the money for the wading pool.
The City of Chinook’s drawings are dated in 1981, and according to the City, that is what year the pool was completely finished with the wading pool added. The pool was dedicated on July 4th, 1976 and the wading pool was added in 1981, fully completing the project. They indicated that the pool was a project of the Chinook Lions Club where Bob Dolan and Ted Westin were leaders of the project. It was financed by a $150,000 Bond issue and a matching grant from the Federal Bureau of Reclamation, formerly the Federal Bureau of Outdoors as well as the Montana Fish and Game Department.
According to the Chinook Book, Sweet Park was gifted to the City in 1925, when Lloyd Sweet’s mother gave eight lots to the community which were developed into the Ensign Sweet Memorial Park, for the site of a Girl Scout Little House. In 1964-65, Lloyd Sweet donated funds for the addition to the Girl Scout Little House at the park. Later, money was given by him to the Chinook Lions Club for improvements and annual maintenance of the park. Today, the Sweet Park Board continues the Sweet Family legacy by ensuring that the park is maintained and taken care of.
City of Chinook Mayor, Jayson Hauer, commented “We are fortunate we live in a community where the residents take action to form committees to seek grants that make projects like this viable. Having raised children in Chinook the pool and park provided our kids with many fun times, memories made, and even a few summer jobs as lifeguards. This project will ensure the pool is available for many more kids to take advantage of all those opportunities, for years to come.”
DePriest added “The investments that the above individuals and organizations gave in the past and today, solidify the importance of these very special entities. We are proud to continue that legacy through the fundraising efforts of the Foundation. We are beyond grateful for the grant and with these funds, we will be continuing with the next Phase of our project, the Park Rehabilitation, which is expected to begin fall of 2026. Stay tuned for more information to come. Thank you Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for your investment into the community of Chinook.”