Kaposia Park
Created in 1937 as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project during the Great Depression, Kaposia Park is one of South St. Paul’s oldest and largest parks. Kaposia Park’s 85 acres remain mostly natural with large mature trees and varying topography including Simon’s Ravine that provides access to a paved Dakota County regional trail. The most recognizable feature of the park is the historic enclosed log pavilion building, which is available for rent, complete with indoor restrooms and kitchen area. Kaposia Park also features a picnic shelter (available for rent), a small ball field, horseshoe pits, sand volleyball, playground area, a paved and boarded hockey rink accessible from Bromley Ave, and tennis courts accessible from Conver Ave. Kaposia Park is also home to a premier 24-hole disc golf course that has been host to state, regional, and international disc golf tournaments.
The park offers the following services, a 24-Hole Disc Golf Course, Horseshoe Pits, a Pavilion, Picnic Areas, Picnic Shelters, a Playground, Restrooms, Sand Volleyball, and Trails.
Fred Lawshe Park
The former site of South St. Paul’s City Hall (from 1890 – 1956), Fred Lawshe Park is located next to present day City Hall at the corner of 3rd Ave. N. and 2nd St. After his retirement in 1958 as the South St. Paul High School industrial arts teacher, Fred Lawshe went on to create and develop the Dakota County Historical Society. Mr. Lawshe was the first president of the Society and later became the first director and curator of the Dakota County Historical Museum, located across the street from the park. Lawshe was actively involved in efforts to preserve and promote sites of historic significance throughout Dakota County and logged thousands of hours organizing collections, creating exhibits, and giving tours to student groups.
Fred Lawshe Park is a great place to stop and take a break on your walk up or down the Grand Avenue hill.
Harmon Park
Located just one block north of McMorrow Fields, Harmon Park is a neighborhood park that distinctively serves as the home of South St. Paul youth and high school Girl’s Fastpitch Softball. South St. Paul’s Harmon Park joins parks of the same name in Pipestone, West St. Paul, and Worthington, Minnesota who benefited from park development funding sponsored by the Harmon Foundation Playgrounds in America program. William E. Harmon was an Ohio-born real estate agent who lived most of his life in New York, where he formed the Foundation that financially supported the development of an estimated 120 to 150 parks and recreational facilities across the United States. Harmon was fond of saying, “A playground now will be a playground forever, for land is the one thing that does not perish. And children will play!”
In addition to the single field softball facility, Harmon Park provides the neighborhood with a playground, tennis courts, paved and boarded hockey rink, and large open areas for passive recreation and picnics.
The park has Baseball/Softball services, as well as a Boarded Hockey Rink, and Picnic Areas for all your picnic needs. The park also has a Playground and Tennis games.
Lorraine Park
Lorraine Park has been a gathering place for families of South St. Paul since the 1930s due to its variety of amenities and central location. This park features a large stand of majestic oak trees that provide a cool canopy on a hot summer day. The outdoor Splash Pool is a zero-depth entry pool which is perfect for young children and beginner water exploration, containing a slide and water spray areas, a separate spa, and a bathhouse complete with concession stand.
Other park amenities include a large picnic shelter, boarded hockey rink with warming house, horseshoe pits, sand volleyball, and a large play structure. Lorraine Park is also home to McGuire Field hosting South St. Paul High School baseball, Stockman Irish adult baseball, and a variety of youth and adult baseball leagues.
The park has Baseball / Softball games and a Boarded Hockey Rink, as well as Horseshoe Pits and Picnic Shelters for anyone wanting to have a picnic here. There is also a Playground and a Swimming Pool, as well as Sand Volleyball games.