Mercer County Park

The Richard J. Coffee Mercer County Park is a recreational park located in West Windsor Township and small western sections of Hamilton and Lawrence Townships in Mercer County, New Jersey. Originally and still more commonly known as Mercer County Park, the park was renamed in October 2009 in honor of New Jersey State Senator Richard J. Coffee.[1]

Picnic tables and the walking path along the Mercer Lake at the park

The park encompasses over 2,500 acres (10 km2) covering much of southern West Windsor, with portions extending into adjacent Hamilton and Lawrence. Mercer Lake, located within the park, is the home for the US Olympic Rowing Team's training center.[2] The National Softball Association honored the Mercer County Park Commission with its "Outstanding Parks Award" for the softball fields and facilities in Mercer County Park. It has served as the home field for the New Jersey Pride of the Major League Lacrosse for one game in 2004, 2005 and 2006. It has also hosted semi-professional Minor League Cricket matches.

History
The shore of Mercer Lake and the park's golf courses across from it

The land was acquired between the late 1960s and the early 1970s. It consists of 50-plus pieces of property, which included many farms. Ground was broken for the park in June 1971. Because of the construction of Routes I-95 and I-295, the lake basin was excavated and paid for by selling gravel to the highway contractors, which in turn helped excavate the basin now known as Lake Mercer.

Facilities
A mountain bike trail in the park

References
  1. Fair, Matt. "Mercer County Park renamed after politician Richard Coffee", The Times (Trenton), October 17, 2009. Accessed February 22, 2011.
  2. "Know, know, know your boat". The Christian Science Monitor. 2008-07-17. Retrieved 2008-12-03.
  3. "Mercer County Ice Skating Center". RinkAtlas. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
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