Clutier Park, located on the south side of town, pictured Friday, Oct. 2. The community is celebrating recently completed improvements to the park, including the installation of new playground equipment, with a Harvest Picnic this Sunday, Oct. 11, beginning at 3:30 p.m. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

CLUTIER – The tiny but mighty Tama County hamlet of Clutier is celebrating a recent community-sprucing project with a Harvest Picnic this Sunday, Oct. 11.

“We are excited to celebrate the completed improvements with the community and, most importantly, to continue preserving the character and history of Clutier Park while making it a place that can be enjoyed by children and families for many years to come,” Clutier City Clerk Darla Riese told the newspaper in a recent email exchange.

Clutier’s park improvement project has been in the works for some time, Riese said. After months of planning and procuring funding, volunteers recently began installing new playground equipment in the park, which is located on the south side of town near Tama-Benton Cooperative. Unfortunately, the equipment arrived much earlier than anticipated, Riese said, and during one of the rainiest Septembers in memory.

“The weather has certainly made the project more complicated – and very muddy,” she admitted, “but we are excited to see the improvements taking shape.”

Funding for the project came from a Tama County Community Foundation grant as well as private donations. The City of Clutier also purchased swings and weed barriers.

The new equipment lineup includes a log roll, seat spinner, jumping bean, balance beam, tether ball, and a bouncy toy called “Flippo.” Riese said local children requested the specific toys and even got to choose the colors.

“We are also adding a family swing and new swings to the existing swing set. Also, a new park camera was installed,” she added.

In addition to all the new equipment, the playground area is being expanded; new wood fiber surfacing is set to be installed; the pavilion will undergo a fresh coat of paint; and new signage will be erected. But despite the many changes, Riese said the City is striving to maintain some of the park’s original, vintage pieces.

“One of our goals was to update the playground while preserving as much of the older equipment as possible,” she explained. “We are keeping the swings, slide, teeter-totter, merry-go-round, bouncy toy, jungle gym, and tunnel. We believe much of this equipment dates back to the 1960s or 1970s, although we are still trying to determine exactly when it was installed or last updated.”

In celebration of the park improvement project, the City of Clutier is sponsoring the 1st annual Clutier Harvest Picnic this Sunday, Oct. 11, beginning at 3:30 p.m. The public is encouraged to attend. The City will provide pork sandwiches, hot chocolate and water, while Clutier Community Church will provide bars and cookies. The community is asked to bring a dish to share, lawn chairs, and lawn games (if desired).

“This project truly became a community effort,” Riese said, in closing. “[Farmers Coop Telephone Company] provided volunteers who helped with much of the heavy lifting. Tama Benton Co-op was absolutely amazing in helping excavate the playground area and remove rocks and difficult material. A business that really came through when things were a muddy mess and saved the day (was) Hauersperger Co LLC – Garrett Hauersperger brought his Bobcat and moved gravel. Iowa Art Glass has also supported the project and has generously offered all of our volunteers a free glass class, which is something we are very excited about!”

Visioning Community

This Sunday’s picnic will also celebrate the recent news announcing Clutier as a 2026-27 Iowa Living Roadways Community Visioning Program selection.

Per the Iowa Department of Transportation’s Iowa’s Living Roadways website, “The Community Visioning Program integrates landscape planning and design with sustainable action to empower community leaders and volunteers in making sound, meaningful decisions about the local landscape. Anchored by a committee of local residents, communities work closely with technical experts from Trees Forever, a private-sector landscape architect, and the Iowa State University Department of Landscape Architecture to create a transportation enhancement plan reflecting the values and identity of the community.”

The Tama County community of Dysart was a Visioning Community in 2022-23. Tama and Toledo were selected as Visioning Communities for the 2020-21 cohort.