LC Coleman Park upgrades includes a nod to history

MECKLENBURG COUNTY

Lynn Coleman Hudson stands next to a photo of her father, Washington Heights advocate L.C. Coleman, at the Oct. 22, 2026, reopening of L.C. Coleman Park in Charlotte. The park underwent $2.9 million in upgrades included a pair of basketball courts, tennis court, outdoor shelter and trails.

L.C. Coleman Park is more than a playground. 

It’s a historic testament to cultural life in Black Charlotte.

The 19.6-acre park in Washington Heights reopened last week with $2.9 million in upgrades that include a pair of basketball courts, tennis court, playground, a multi-use field, outdoor shelter and trails. There’s also signage that conveys the facility’s century-long history as a social and religious hub. 

The park is named in honor of Lewis Cardinal Coleman Jr., a Washington Heights resident and advocate for equality in Mecklenburg County’s park system.

“This whole area, the west side, was filled with leaders – filled with people who were fighting for this community and for the whole of Charlotte,” said Lynn Coleman Hudson, Coleman’s daughter. “L.C. — he wasn’t a quiet person, but he didn’t raise his voice much — but he was able to make change, and he was able to impact. So, that’s our challenge: that we all do what we can to make a difference.”

The investment included funds from the federal American Rescue Plan Act that were also used for improvements at Archdale Park, Druid Hills Park, and Monroe Road Park – each of which were identified in 2021 as most in need of improvements.

“We at Mecklenburg County are proud to continue our unwavering commitment to environmental stewardship, social justice, and increasing access to quality park and recreation facilities and amenities,” commissioner Mark Jerrell said at the Oct. 22 dedication. “As a county, we’re certainly aware of the strong equivalency that exists between parks and our quality of life, and this is why we continue to prioritize and support these types of investments as part of our environmental stewardship and, more importantly, our equity work.”

In the 1920s, the space was known as Clinton Park or Clinton Beach and included a 100-room bathhouse, dance hall, and a lake where United House of Prayer for All People, led by founder Bishop C.M. “Sweet Daddy” Grace presided over mass baptisms. 

After World War II, its name was changed to Sunset Park and Recreation Center, a private social club and venue for musicians, dances and club meetings as well as the only local pool accessible to Black people before desegregation and the site of swimming lessons conducted by the McCrorey YMCA. 

The pavilion continued to operate under several names in the 1950s and ‘60, including Hi-Fi Country Club and Mona Lisa – where human rights activist Malcolm X spoke in 1963 – before the site was renamed L.C. Coleman Park.
 

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