COUNTY News:

Los Alamos County Council is hosting a Sign Unveiling Ceremony at 2 p.m. today to recognize the Kiwanis Club of Los Alamos and celebrate the history and creation of the Los Alamos Project Main Gate Park.

In 1943, the Main Gate Park site was the east entry gate to the “secret city” of Los Alamos during the Manhattan Project. Credentials were required to enter there until 1957.

In 1986, Sunrise Kiwanis, now the Kiwanis Club of Los Alamos, adopted the location to create a much-needed place for campers to park while visiting Los Alamos. Kiwanis raised more than $30,000 and served hundreds of hours of volunteer labor to improve the site. That effort, combined with an additional $12,000 from the State created the Sunrise Park.

Kiwanis was recognized in 1986 with a Certificate of Merit award for its effort to Beautify America, presented by Secretary of the Interior Don Paul Hodel. It was one of 50 such awards given across the country at the time. The Kiwanis Club continues to help maintain the park today.

In 2016, the Los Alamos County Council passed a resolution officially renaming the park Los Alamos Project Main Gate Park in recognition of the creation of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The replica of the main gate guard shack was previously added in 2015 and is a popular photo opportunity with visitors.

The sign in the picnic area at Main Gate Park acknowledges this important history and recognizes the Kiwanis Club of Los Alamos and its ongoing commitment and service to the community.