Last chance to comment on changes to Powderhorn Park

The Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board is sponsoring the last in a series of Community Advisory Committee meetings for the South Service Area Master Plan (SSAMP) on Thursday, May 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Central Gym community room, 3400 4th Ave. S.  This Master Plan will create a comprehensive, cohesive set of new park plans for Currie, Diamond Lake, Powderhorn and Todd.  Additional project topics will be raised if time allows.
At its Feb. 3 meeting, the park board approved concept plans for the replacement of the Powderhorn Park wading pool and two and a half of its four playgrounds.
The wading pool, located next to the recreation center near the intersection of East 34th Street and 15th Avenue South, will close next August. Workers will replace the 45-year-old pool plus decking and fencing surrounding the pool, and install new benches, a shade structure and zero-depth entry. Play features may be added if there is room in the budget after construction is contracted out. The new pool is expected to open for the 2017 swimming season.
The playground next to the wading pool will close this spring and reopen featuring new play equipment either in late summer or fall or the spring of 2017. Workers may use the wading pool playground as a staging area while replacing the wading pool, which would keep the playground closed longer. The portion of the playground designed for children aged 2-5 will feature a small climbing structure, slide, swings, group seesaw and climbable play dome. The portion of the playground designed for children aged 5-12 will feature several climbing structures, monkey bars, a regular slide and roller slide, group spinner and solo spinner. The new playground’s surface will contain wood fiber mulch and rubber pathways.
The playground on the west side of the park, near the intersection of East 33rd Street and 10th Avenue South, will also close this spring and reopen in late summer/fall featuring new play equipment. The portion of the playground designed for children aged 2-5 will feature four swings, a climbing structure with a slide, double rocker and small spinner. The portion of the playground designed for children aged 5-12 features a more challenging net climbing structure, two regular swings and a group swing. The new playground’s surface will contain wood fiber mulch and rubber pathways.
The playground on the east side of the park, near the athletic fields, will undergo a partial renovation. The portion of the playground designed for children aged 2-5 will receive a new traditional climbing structure with an upper platform, steps, climbers and slides. Two small swings will also be installed. The portion of the playground designed for children aged 5-12 will remain in place. The tentative long-term plan for this playground is to shift it slightly to create more flexible open field space. The MPRB is also exploring building adventure play for older kids in this area, which would include amenities like embankment slides or an obstacle course.
The playground in the southeast corner of the park, near the intersection of East 35th Street and 15th Avenue South, will keep most of its play equipment in place for the near future. The tentative long-term plan for this playground is to remove the traditional equipment and build a Nature Play Area in the southwest area of the park. Nature Play Areas create an alternative to manufactured play structures by combining items like wood mulch, boulders, logs, stumps, plants, loose parts, art and music. Nature play cannot be done within the budget of this project, but it’s an idea currently being reviewed as part of the South Service Area Master Plan.
Budget: $500,000 for wading pool replacement and $540,000 for playground equipment replacements in Powderhorn Park.