It was a day for celebration, and it went off with a bang. Saturday marked the official opening of the Northland Regional Sports Park in Beltrami County. A special park dedication ceremony included a flag raising and, of course, a ceremonial ribbon cutting to celebrate a project that had been many years in the making.

Starting with a blank slate, the 360-acre sports park is a one of a kind facility. Similar venues don’t provide the variety like this park, which now has other communities looking to this facility as an example.

But what makes this park stand out is the many partnerships formed and all the volunteers who worked the long hours to make this facility a reality.

With trap and skeet clubs growing at a rapid pace in area schools, this new facility hit the mark and will likely host many regional events.

While the Bemidji Area Shooters Association and the Bemidji Trap and Skeet Club are based in the park, the venue remains open to the public.

With the park aimed to be a success, plans to continue growing the park are still right on target.

By — Josh Peterson

News Reporter in Bemidji | jpeterson@lptv.org