A project to revamp East Street Park in Waynesville has received a grant from the Pigeon River Fund that will allow the vision to move forward. East Street Park received $17,650 of its $25,200 grant request. 

“We’re ecstatic and are of the mind that nothing will stop us now,” said Ralphene Rathbone, who will manage the project along with Katie Messer. 

The grant-funded portion of the project will take place over the course of 2015. It will involve a plan to improve water quality in the little tributary to Shelton Branch that runs through the 5.8-acre park. Shelton Branch runs into Richland Creek, which Haywood Waterways Association has for years been trying to get off the state’s list of impaired waterways. The funds will go toward stabilizing the streambank, reshaping the stream channel to reduce erosion, planting a rain garden to reduce storm runoff and replacing invasive species with native ones. 

Future goals will include installing new playground equipment, bathrooms, a nature trail and a butterfly garden.