The new PrairiePlay at Meadowbrook Park is now open | Parks and recreation

GORBANA — The new PrairiePlay is open just in time for Halloween.

The new playground at Meadowbrook Park is open year-round from dawn to dusk, Urbana Park District officials announced Thursday afternoon. A festive open day is scheduled for May 3, 2025.

“This is the culmination of a true community effort to replace a beloved playground with a new one that is accessible to more people,” said Executive Director Tim Bartlett.

The original PrairiePlay playground was built in 1995. In a previous interview, Bartlett said structural stability was the park district’s main concern because the playground’s vertical supports were “set into the ground.”

Additionally, the structure was not ADA compliant.

The community said goodbye to the old playground at the last play event in late February, and later, after two work days in March, the structure was demolished when community members could pick up the Helping Hands pavers they had purchased when the playground was originally built.

The new play area includes climbing structures, zip lines, swings and a music station, park officials said. Grants and private donations were among the sources of funding for the $1.1 million project, and the county sought public input on the project.

“It’s a great and exciting place to play and we hope the public enjoys it,” Bartlett said.