Coquille Parks & Recreation started with a group of dedicated
volunteers who envisioned the children of the community playing
baseball, softball, basketball, soccer and football all in one location.
Joseph Koepp, Jr. was one of the dedicated volunteers that worked the
hardest. He was an original member of the Madisonville Men’s Civic
Club, the organization that started youth sports in Madisonville. The
Madisonville Men’s Civic Club was formed by a group of men, who built a
ball field for the children of the surrounding area on Main Street and
Pine Street in 1960. Joseph Koepp, Jr. along with a few other men,
made things happen for Madisonville. They passed the torch and it is up
to today’s parents to keep it going. From the Madisonville Men’s Civic
Club came the Madisonville Youth Boosters in 1984. The Madisonville
Youth Boosters is a volunteer organization formed to foster recreational
sports competition while providing a safe and enjoyable environment for
the children of the surrounding area. In 1989, volunteers built two
baseball fields on Pine Street, which was previously swamp land.
Due to
the rapid growth of recreational sports in the 1990’s, makeshift fields
were added on Mable Drive, near the Maritime Museum. Makeshift
practice fields were placed on vacant lots throughout the area. It
became obvious that there was a need for someone to help develop a
recreation district for the surrounding community. Thus Recreation
District #14 was created and the Parish appointed a Board in 1999.
Recreation District #14 is a publicly financed district that was created
to serve citizens living within the district. Recreation District #14
is the area roughly bordered by Lake Ponchartrain to the South,
Covington to the North, the Tchefuncte River to the East and Tangipahoa
Parish to the West. The Recreation Board was appointed by Parish
President Kevin Davis and District Councilmen Floyd Glass. The board
was made up of the seven following individuals: Patricia Dedon, Stephen
Dwyer, Tim Hymel, Paul Lea, Wayne Morlier, Lloyd Ostendorf, Jr. and Jean
Pelloat. The Recreation District was approved by district #14 voters
in July 1999 when they passed a $1.8 million bond issue to build the
facility. An additional 10-year, 5-mill property tax was also passed to
operate and maintain the site. Since then, the millages have been
rolled back. In 1999, Recreation District #14 bought a 46-acre site
located on Louisiana 1085 just North of Interstate 12. The land
purchased previously held crawfish ponds and would soon become a
multisport facility that was long overdue. The site would become the
home for dozens of youth league teams playing various sports. A
groundbreaking ceremony was held on September 8, 2001. Several West St.
Tammany politicians and Parish officials joined members of the
District’s Board of Directors and friends to celebrate the work that had
been envisioned so many years before. Joseph Koepp, Jr. also attended
the festivities and he was praised and honored for his many years of
hard work and dedication to our youth. The ceremony was an exciting
event for all that attended and was just the beginning of new things yet
to come.
The original park plans included three baseball fields, three
softball fields, a football/soccer field and a gymnasium. The
facility, with the exception of the football/soccer field, was all
lighted. Two concession stands, batting cages, restrooms and parking
areas were also included in the plans. In addition to the ball fields, a
picnic area and walking trail was included which would be built at a
later time. The new park needed a name. The Recreation Board had a
naming contest that was open to the public. The Board received a lot of
submissions and they reviewed all of them. Patricia Glass submitted
the name “Coquille Sports Complex”. “Coquille” is an Indian name that
means “abundance of shells”. The name referred to the numerous clam
shells that were located in Madisonville and along Lake Ponchartrain.
Coquille Sports Complex was chosen as the name of the new park.
The gymnasium was the first completed project in the Fall of 2002. The
baseball, softball, football/soccer fields were all completed in the
Spring of 2003. The opening ceremonies took place on the new baseball
fields in April of 2003. During the event, the widow and daughter of
Joseph Koepp, Jr. were presented a plaque for Mr. Joe’s long history of
volunteer work for the youth of the Madisonville area. The road
entering the park was dedicated and named “Joseph Koepp Boulevard” in
his honor.
Today, Coquille Parks & Recreation has over 4,000 youth
and 500 adult participants in the programs offered at the facility.
Coquille offers the following sports: baseball, softball, t-ball,
basketball, soccer, volleyball, rugby, flag football, football and
cheerleading. All of the programs are managed by Coquille staff along
with volunteers of the Madisonville Youth Boosters. Today, Coquille has
12 diamond fields, 5 rectangular fields, 4 gymnasiums, 8 tennis courts,
2 playgrounds, a special event field, a splash pad, a walking trail
that measures 1/3 mile, and an outdoor area that hosts games including
bocce ball, shuffleboard and horseshoes. Coquille is continuing to grow
and will be building additional facilities including a dog park, a
multi-purpose pavilion, a beachfront area, a disc golf course a dog park
and expanding the walking trails throughout the park. Coquille
continues to invest in the community that has invested in their
recreational opportunities.
