The Brackenridge Park Conservancy hopes to transform a heart-shaped, two-acre site by the San Antonio River, creating a vibrant nature playscape featuring slides, water features, and various fun activities. This $8 million attraction is set to be the showpiece at the park's north end. Recently unveiled renderings at a community meeting revealed play areas encompassing swings, climbing towers, and hillside lawns, all wrapped around themes reflecting the park's rich history.
For thousands of years, indigenous peoples thrived around the San Antonio area, and the region's rich waterways nurtured the community during its early Spanish colonial days. The Conservancy is inviting public feedback to turn this underutilized grassy space, situated near picnic stations, south of Lambert Beach Softball Field, and surrounded by the river on three sides, to facilitate healthy children's play.
“It’s going to really get kids back out...and introduce them to hands-on, nature-based play activities, things...that are more engaging with their minds and their bodies,” said Rob Gray, principal with Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects, the project consultant. The design work for this ambitious initiative is already nearing half completion.
According to project officials addressing around 40 community members, key decisions remain to be made about durable materials suitable for the flood-prone area, lighting for nighttime usage, and management responsibilities. The planned playscape will be free and fully accessible, with existing trees preserved, except for certain saplings to be relocated.
Water pumps will circulate water through play areas, enhancing its interactive elements. The preliminary budget includes provisions for restroom facilities and a footbridge. Chris Maitre, the Conservancy's newly appointed CEO, believes the park, which neighbors popular attractions like the Witte Museum, San Antonio Zoo, and the Japanese Tea Garden, could achieve national recognition as one of the best city parks with the help of this nature playscape initiative.
“We really believe...a significant restroom upgrade is needed as part of this anchor project,” emphasized Maitre. The planned activities for children will reflect the park’s historical roots; kids can dig for pretend dinosaur bones and manmade tools within the archaeology-themed sand play area, closely related to where archaeologists have uncovered spear points dating back over 10,000 years.
Children will also engage with lightweight logs to create structures, fostering creativity and teamwork. The design process has actively incorporated feedback gathered from two public meetings, over 500 surveys, and playful “voting” wherein children and adults used marbles to express their activity preferences. The conservancy's data revealed children lean toward water play and climbing, whereas adults showed great interest in sensory habitat mazes.
Future steps involve continuing the design work and gathering more public feedback before presenting the refined proposal to the Brackenridge Park Stakeholder Advisory Committee. The Conservancy plans to request City Council approval for tax-increment reinvestment zone funds, seeking to establish jointly funded arrangements with the conservancy aiming to fulfill the project’s budget fully. Hopes are set for project completion by October 2026, with Maitre commenting, “That’s a pretty aggressive schedule. But we’ve heard from...public...‘I want my kids to enjoy this...’”
Separately, the Cargill Cayuga Salt Mine, situated under the southern end of Cayuga Lake, has extended its public comment deadline for its reclamation permit renewal to January 19, 2025. This permit renewal proposal includes modifications to their water storage practices within the approved mining area, ensuring sustainable management for at least the next 15 years at current inflow rates. The affected area spans approximately 13,579 surface and underground acres.
Community engagement remains central to the permit renewal process, with interested citizens encouraged to make written comments or inquiries to Jonathan Stercho at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to address any concerns or feedback surrounding the permit documentation.
Meanwhile, the City of Statesboro has also reached out for public input on improvements planned for West Main Street. Although the comment period has concluded, residents can still access project plans and renderings online. The streetscape project, managed by the Augusta-based engineering firm Cranston, aims to revitalize West Main Street with decorative streetlights, benches, landscaping, drainage enhancements, utility relocations, and traffic engineering improvements throughout the area surrounding the intersections of North Main and South College Streets.
A public meeting hosted by the City on November 14, 2024, served as the platform for residents to express their views and gather information about this significant community undertaking.
Engagement from residents across these projects indicates the shared goal of shaping positive community enhancements through public feedback. From the playful revamping of Brackenridge Park to responsible mining practices at Cargill and the streetscape improvements within Statesboro, public participation is not just encouraged; it’s necessary for the evolution of these community spaces.
