An excavator rips into the city park pavilion. The building, constructed in 1964, will soon be replaced by a bigger and better shelter.

Park pavilion making room for replacement

by Nathan Arneal
Published 7/27/16

The pavilion that stood in the heart of the North Bend City Park for 52 years has been demolished and removed.

The barren plot of land where it once stood will soon be the site of a new and improved pavilion that will measure 30 feet by 50 feet, a 39 percent increase in size over the former 30-by-36 building.

Members of the Presbyterian church work the last Old Settlers food stand out of the old pavilion June 26 [2016].

Bob Shanahan has chaired the Chamber of Commerce barbecue in the pavilion on Old Settlers Saturday on and off for about 25 years. He said it is time for a new building.

“A long time ago it seemed like it was OK,” he said, “but as we changed how we did things and we needed more electric things plugged in— we made do with it. We barely made do.”

The new pavilion will have a hot water heater, something the old pavilion didn’t have.

“Not having any hot water is a terrible problem,” Shanahan said. “(We were) having to take all the dirty dishes somewhere else, haul them away to clean them. (The pavilion) was barely adequate from a utility standpoint. Square footage, it was adequate, but everything else, the utilities, were bad. It will be really nice to have something new.”

The pavilion sees most of its use during Old Settlers. In addition to the Saturday barbecue, it also hosts the church food stand on Sunday with the local churches taking turns running the stand.

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