Ward 4 Councillor Mark McKenzie was joined today by James Chacko, Executive Director of Parks and Facilities, to officially open the newly completed themed playground at Willistead Park in the heart of Walkerville.
This is our 18th playground that we have now opened in the last 14 months,” James Chacko, executive director of parks and facilities for the city, said. “So certainly a great accomplishment with nine more to open within the next six weeks and the remaining to be opened by the end of the summer, very early fall.”
The new playground is custom designed and themed with elements inspired by Willistead Manor’s architecture. The structure is accessible and features a ramped gazebo, play panels and a rubber surface. A large tube slide, swings and climber are also being included. The new playground is located in the same location as the previous playground, which was well used and had reached the end of its service life.
“The new playground is in the same area as the previous one, which was well used and was in need of replacement. It’s custom deigned. I’m always amazed at how our Parks Department works with our suppliers to custom design some of these playground,” Councillor Mark McKenzie said Friday. “I don’t know where you find some of these things James, but it’s incredible and obvious that it has many features that compliment Willistead and Hiram Walker.”
The Willistead Park play structure is one of 125 public playgrounds in Windsor that are being upgraded and modernized through the Playground Replacement Program. The budget for the new structure is $440,000, which is part of the $9.4 million approved by Council in 2021 that is being spent to construct 32 new accessible playgrounds in 2022 and 2023 across the city.