Altoona Residents Celebrate Opening of The Yard Container Park

ALTOONA, Wis (WCFW) – Altoona residents gathered downtown this weekend for the grand opening of the long-awaited container park project dubbed “The Yard.”

Local officials gathered at The Yard Container Park on Saturday for a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony. The project has been years in the making and can finally serve as a catalyst for revitalizing the downtown Altoona area.

“This has been a roughly three year project,” said Mayor Brendan Pratt. “At some points we weren’t quite sure if this was going to actually happen.”

“In my 30 years in public administration, I can’t recall another project that’s had so many twists and turns,” said City Administrator Mike Golat. “And that includes River Prairie, which is a pretty big project. But despite the hurdles, we are here today and it’s finally time to celebrate and have some fun.”

The site on Division Street features a number of small shops made out of repurposed shipping containers, as well as a stage area for live music and green space where residents participated in a cornhole tournament on Saturday afternoon.

“We were looking for something like this to rejuvenate old downtown,” said Mayor Pratt. “We’ve got River Prairie, now we want to focus on this area downtown and this is a great start to making this happen.”

In addition to bringing some new attention to the downtown area, local officials are also hoping that The Yard will provide local entrepreneurs with a place to start their businesses. The idea is that businesses, particularly restaurants, could get their start in the container park and establish a solid customer base before moving into a more permanent location.

“This is just a really exciting time for growth in Altoona all over the place,” said State Representative Jodi Emerson. “And I’m happy to be a part of it.”