Foster Park district officially on National Register of Historic Places

A statue of a girl leapfrogging frames one of the houses in the Foster Park District in Le Mars, which was recently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The district includes the 500-900 blocks on Central Avenue South and blocks around Foster Park. The listing was announced Wednesday night during a municipal band concert. [Click to enlarge]

A warm summer evening with music in the air provided the backdrop for the official announcement that Foster Park and the surrounding neighborhood is now officially recognized as an historic district by the National Register of Historic Places Wednesday night.

"We're here to celebrate a huge, monumental thing that we think is great for Le Mars and great for this district," said Linda Mayrose, a member of the Le Mars Historic Preservation Commission. "We thank this wonderful band (Le Mars Municipal Band) and Mr. Bertrand for sharing their evening with us."

The commission began work on the nominating project eight years ago.

"They worked diligently on this project. It took many, many hours," Mayrose said.

Members of the commission who worked on the project include Mayrose, Iris Hemmingson, Genevieve Grau, Kay Luckett, Wanda Wichers, and Jayne McGuire. Randy Becker is a newly appointed member.

Mayrose commended Hemmingson as the driving force in getting the project completed.

"Iris is on a mission to Tanzania and can't be with us tonight," Mayrose said. "She wanted us to share this night with the band and with you," she told the audience seated in the park.

The Foster Park Historic District includes portions of Fifth Street Southeast and Southwest, First Avenue Southwest, Second Avenue Southeast, the 600 block of Third Avenue Southeast, Eighth Street Southeast and Southwest, and the 800 and 900 blocks of Central Avenue Southeast and Southwest.

The park block was originally platted for eight houses by the Foster family. In 1899, two daughters decided to give the block to the city of Le Mars for park. Three years later, Foster Park, then called City Park, became a reality.

"It has been a major public landscape in the city and a featured place and an important social gathering place, as you see it still is today," Mayrose said.

Through the years, the park has been home to three band shells, including the current one, a dog fountain which according to Mayrose, was quite attractive, a time capsule from the Le Mars centennial and quasquicentennial, and several sculptures in memory of Le Mars residents.

"We feel Foster Park is a key area of this city and what an honor to now be on the National Register," Mayrose said.

Le Mars Mayor Dick Kirchoff said, "We are proud that we have accomplished this honor for the city of Le Mars.

"This indeed is a great honor, not only for the city of Le Mars and its citizens, but also for the historic preservation members," he said. "This park also helps our tourism program in this town."

Kirchoff told a story of meeting a couple from Red Wing, Minn., three weeks ago, as they traveled through Le Mars. After seeing the nice homes, they decided to drive around the town before heading to Sioux City for an overnight stop.

"They drove down Central Avenue and shared with me they had seen this beautiful park and all the homes around here and they were just amazed," Kirchoff said. "They elected to say in Le Mars that night, and go on and travel around Le Mars the next day. I think that's a chapter that speaks very well of this city. This is something we can all be very proud of."

Mayrose also read from a letter from consultant Marlys Svendsen, who worked with the commission throughout the nominating process.

"Congratulations to Le Mars and the neighbors in Foster Park on receiving your neighborhood to the National Register of Historic Places. This is a rare honor afforded only to the most historically and architecturally significant neighborhoods in Iowa and across the nation.

"By going through the process of researching and evaluating your neighborhood's history of development, you have created a listing record for current and future residents," Svendsen wrote.

"You know that I say that owners of historic properties are stewards," she added. "If we own a property for a brief time and then pass it on to the next owner and kept it well, we have done our job as stewards."

The recognition came on the final band concert of the 2008 season by the Le Mars Municipal Band. Band concerts have been a long-time tradition in the park.

The Le Mars Dialysis Services, which was scheduled to sell treats at the concert to raise funds for their own project, instead distributed free ice cream treats donated by Wells' Dairy, Inc., in honor of the park's official designation as a National Register of Historic Places historic district.