HARRISBURG, Pa. — The City of Harrisburg's Parks & Recreation Department is seeking input from the public on the planned redesign of the city's parks and playgrounds, and on Thursday they issued an invitation to attend a series of free picnics to share ideas.
The play spaces at Reservoir Park, Wilson Park, 7th & Radnor Park and Gorgas Playground are up for renovation, city leaders said.
There will be six picnics and one virtual meeting, the city said.
The meetings will take place on Saturday, July 22 at 1 p.m. at Reservoir Park; Sunday, July 23 at 11 a.m. at 7th & Radnor/Gorgas Playground; Monday, July 26 at 6 p.m. at Wilson Park; Friday, Sept. 15 at 6 p.m. at Reservoir Park; Saturday, Sept. 16 at 12 p.m. at Wilson Park; and Sunday, Sept. 17 at 11 a.m. at 7th & Radnor/Gorgas.
Families can sign up for multiple picnics.
To RSVP to any of the seven meeting dates, scan the QR code below.
In addition, there will be a virtual meeting held over Teams on Monday, Aug. 21 at 12 p.m., the city said. The meeting link will be provided at a later date.
In October 2022, the City of Harrisburg received $13,005,733 in grant money from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)-CARES Act funding, which is designed to support community improvements meant to enhance the quality of life for residents.
Because the grant comes from CARES Act funding, the city had to show why improvements were needed as related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The pandemic highlighted not only how much our residents wanted to use our parks, but how much those parks desperately needed improvements,” said Harrisburg Mayor Wanda R.D. Williams.
The Department of Parks and Recreation decided to focus the attention on parks it felt needed the most immediate work based off how often they are used and the quality of current equipment, the city said.
In April, project leaders started a three-month public comment period where hundreds of people filled out surveys which detailed what they wanted to see in their parks and playgrounds.
The next round of “picnic” public meetings will be done in three phases:
- The first three meetings held July 22-24 will discuss 30% of the design for each park on each respective park’s date
- The Aug. 21 Teams Webinar will discuss all three projects at 60% design completion
- The final three meetings held Sept. 15-17 will provide the public a glance at designs at 90% completion, and get input on the finishing touches
“These parks will look nothing like they do now once we’re done with them,” said Parks and Recreation director Dave Baker. “We’re going to undergo a complete rehabilitation to bring them up to modern requirements and expectations for what our residents deserve.”
Among the changes being discussed at 7th & Radnor and Gorgas Playground include: new bleachers, press box, concession stand, stadium lighting, multi-purpose courts, field restoration, new play equipment and new landscaping.
At Wilson Playground, proposed changes include new lighting, basketball and volleyball courts, stormwater infrastructure and connectivity to Greenbelt walking trails.
At Reservoir Park, the proposed improvements include a spray park, stormwater infrastructure, new restrooms and pavilions, water play features, and increased lighting.
In addition, increased ADA accessibility will be at the forefront of all decisions, the city said.
Projects are slated for completion by the end of next year.
