New and improved exclusive look at Lake Cunningham

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Next week, the gates will be unlocked and the Lake Cunningham park will be open to the public.

It took about a year for rainwater to fall and fill the lake. The lake was drained because of zebra mussel invasion and for construction.

That construction has made the park pretty much brand new. Brook Bench is the Executive Director of the Lake Cunningham Development Trust, he says one of the most special things around the park is the new trail system that now makes a full loop around the park.

“We’ve got 6.2 miles of concrete spanning all around the lake connected with two bridges so we can connect from the marina over to the campground,” said Bench.

The campground has also been renovated and upgraded. There are now 95 campground stalls, the marina, all dressed up and ready to go.

“All the docks were put back, we just did the electrical and plumbing in all the docks so everything is up and operational. We brought the lighthouse back, it’s painted our theme now, our brand,” said Bench.

There are a lot of improvements in the $23 million project and Bench says there are more on the way.

“We want to continue and doing new things here, new playgrounds, new mountain biking, making this better and better as the years come and I think with the 1,500-acre footprint, the partnerships we have with the Crops of Engineers and the City of Omaha, and the trust has been outstanding moving that forward. I think the sky’s the limit of what we can accomplish at Lake Cunningham,” said Bench.

Lake Cunningham is set to reopen to the public Thursday, August 5 at noon. There will be an opening day celebration.

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