MOSES LAKE — Two grants totaling over $130,000 from the Paul Lauzier Foundation were recently received by the city of Moses Lake and will be used to improve one of the city’s parks, as well as the police department.

One of the grants from the Paul Lauzier Foundation, which totals $110,000, will go toward making improvements to the Paul Lauzier Athletic Complex, 933 Central Drive. Parks and Recreation Director Spencer Grigg said the funds will allow the city to add scoreboards to all five fields at the complex.

In addition, the funds will be used to automate the field lighting. As it stands currently, if the lights are left on at the end of the day the city has to send someone to turn them off. Automating the system would allow the city to turn the lights on and off from a computer, tablet or smartphone.

“The check from the Lauzier Charitable Foundation was for $110,000. And they are paying the lion's share of those modifications and improvements to that complex so we are pretty excited about it,” Grigg stated during a recent council meeting.

In addition to the park-related grant, the Moses Lake Police Department was awarded a $20,500 grant to bolster the department’s K-9 program and add a second K-9 in the future. The MLPD’s first K-9 officer, Chief, has only been on duty for a handful of weeks, but MLPD Chief Kevin Fuhr says those weeks have been marked with success.

“Our K-9 program in four weeks has been phenomenal. He’s (Chief) been used every week so far. So it’s been great,” Fuhr said.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.