It's been home to figure skaters and soccer players. RIM Park marked its 10th anniversary on Sunday.
Taxpayers will be paying for RIM Park for the next 10 years but staff and some visitors say the park is a valuable legacy.
Isobel Chalmers is an avid RIM Park user and says "I like to walk through RIM Park because you feel like you're out in the country on some of these trails."
RIM Park manager Chris Cressman says "well over 1.3 million, of an actual count, of people coming through the doors."
Over the years the park has been the subject of controversy over the financing of the construction and ensuing lawsuits.
Waterloo Mayor Brenda Halloran stated back on June 22nd of this year that taxpayers spent 4.8 million on legal fees over the last 8 years against MFP Financial Services.
Councillors at the time thought the park would cost 113 million dollars. The actual cost to the city was 228 million dollars.
Waterloo Councillor Diane Freeman says "Would we have liked to have funded it in a different way? Sure we would have but you know what? We have to move forward, we are moving forward. We have a plan to retire the debt."
The city is paying 5 million dollars a year to reduce that debt and will do so until 2031.
Isobel Chalmers agrees the cost is high but takes it in stride. "Taxes are high and certainly we'll be paying this facility for a long time. On the other hand, probably 30 years down the road, people will say what vision."
Staff is excited about RIM Park's role on the global sports scene. The golf course will be host to an LPGA tour event in 2012.
