'Eye-catching' playground at Festival Park in Elgin now open

The installation of new playground equipment at Festival Park in Elgin was finished Friday, and the splash pad is expected to open after repairs in about a week, city officials said.

The new equipment replaced old, worn items that required constant and costly maintenance repairs at the park at 132 S. Grove Ave., Public Works Superintendent Greg Hulke said.

"Festival Park is one of the city's most popular parks due to its downtown riverfront location, and the new equipment was selected because it was eye-catching and provided play aspects for kids of all ages," Hulke said.

The former rope climber playground structure was more difficult for younger children to play on, he said. Now, there are features lower to the ground for 2- to 5-year-olds and higher-climbing features for 5- to 12-year olds, he said.

The playground installation was anticipated to be done Memorial Day but was delayed due to weather and "a few unexpected supply needs," Hulke said.

The city allocated $60,000 from the general fund and $12,000 in park development funds to buy the new playground equipment from Team REIL Inc., based in Union. Installation cost $57,000, city spokeswoman Molly Center said.

There are two other such playground installations in the country: in Round Rock, Texas, and Humboldt, Nebraska, she said.

The splash pad at Festival Park is undergoing repairs and is expected to open within a week or so, Center said. The city has another, smaller splash pad by the Eastside Recreation Center, 1080 E. Chicago St.