Anyone looking to pay an early winter visit to the Ernie Miller Nature Center in Olathe is going to notice some major changes for the next couple of months.
For one, the center is closed to drop-in visitors due to construction. People can still sign up for programs, but they’ll be more limited and must be registered for in advance. Because ice makes the center’s hill location treacherous, the center may offer fewer programs in the coming months. And visitors may find themselves walking further from the parking lot and negotiating some slopes, according to the project page. A portable toilet will be at the main parking lot.
But the temporary inconveniences will be worth it once the construction is complete, said Andrea Joslin, outdoor education manager for the park.
The upgrades will give the county park a new multi-purpose room, lobby updates, bird enclosures that allow raptors to look up at the night sky and, perhaps most important, restroom space that can be used when the trails are open but the building is closed.
Work is already underway, with construction on the $3.7 million project expected to end mid-2026.
Demolition has begun on the main entrance of the building, which was about 40 years old. The lobby and old classroom have been torn down. The replacement will give the center more flexible space that can serve more people, Joslin said.
What changes are coming to the center?
Multi-purpose room — A larger, dividable room for programming is one of the key elements of the construction, Joslin said, because it makes the space flexible for summer camps, especially during rainy weather.
The new space will also be better for pre-schoolers’ programs because of its dedicated bathroom, she said. In the past, children would have to be escorted through the hallway, which is open to the public, for a bathroom break. The new space also will have a breakroom for snacks and a hand washing station.
Restroom accessibility — An all-gender restroom with floor-to-ceiling stalls will have doors opening both outside and inside the nature center building. This will make it possible for people using the trails, which are open dawn to dusk, to have access to a restroom even if the nature center building is closed.
The new restroom also makes it easier for teachers to go in and supervise all the children. It will have a large stall and changing table that conforms to the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, Joslin said.
The outside doors of the restroom will lock automatically as the last person leaves at park closing time. Joslin said security cameras will be on site and the doors are designed not to lock anyone inside.
Bird enclosures — Ernie Miller’s bird population will get new enclosures that allow the avian residents to keep track of other birds flying overhead and even sit in the rain, if they want to, Joslin said. The improved enclosures will still have a roof and three walls, and face open to the outside. But part of the enclosure’s roof will be open to the sky. Instead of moving the birds inside each day from their outside roosts, they can remain in the same space, she added.
The nature center currently has six birds — two large owls, two red-tailed hawks and two small birds that do programs but are not on display.
One other notable change concerns the stone fireplace that has been a fixture since the center was built, Joslin said. The old fireplace was “massive”, she said, and burned wood. It will be replaced by a new fireplace with the same asymmetrical shape and similar stone veneer, and there’s a plan to use the original log mantelpiece, she said. The new fireplace will be easier to light up for programs and storytelling because it will be electric, she added.
In the meantime, people who want to attend a program at Ernie Miller are advised to call well ahead to find out about access and availability. More information is available at the county parks website.
