farmington, new mexico on verge of launching its first aerial adventure park

A trend that is exciting outdoor enthusiasts across the country may soon see construction in Farmington.

Members of the Farmington City Council have voted to approve funding a feasibility study that will look into the possibility of building an aerial adventure park that could go up at Lake Farmington or along the banks of the Animas River.
It’s estimated that such a park could cost anywhere from $750,000 to $1.5 million to build.

The study will be conducted by the Albuquerque-based Groundwork Studio, which specializes in landscape architecture, urban design, and planning. According to city documents, Groundwork will be tasked with providing a “market analysis and conceptual design” for the project.

Aerial adventure parks are becoming increasingly popular nationally and usually include such physically challenging features as rickety bridges, spider nets, rock climbing, and swinging platforms.

Usually built in open green space or woods-like environments, such parks also offer zip lines: a pulley suspended on a cable that is often made of stainless steel, allowing users to travel in the air many or a few feet above the ground.

The Unicoi Zipline & Aerial Adventure Park in Helen, Georgia, which features an aerial tower as well as sky bridges, also recently introduced zip lines 75 to 100 feet in height.

It has been suggested in public meetings that an aerial adventure park in Farmington might work best as a joint private/public project.

By Garry Boulard

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