By Emily Harrington
An outdated park received a makeover thanks to the Champaign Park District. Glenn Park was an old-school-metal-contraptions-with-peeling-paint kind of a park before it was selected to get some much needed TLC.
This new and improved park sits on a 2.1-acre median in a neighborhood on Glenn Park Drive at 400 N. Mattis Ave. The park is just about ready to entertain kids and parents. When you do visit, make sure to enter the neighborhood park while going north on Mattis Avenue because of some one-way streets! I learned this the hard way.
Currently fencing is in place, and the playground is closed as crews finish up construction on the playground area. A temporary walkway, fine grading and seeding still need to be completed. You can expect the play area to open in early November (weather permitting).
The new playground features safe, modern equipment with a large structure designed for ages 5-12. This structure features a trio of slides (perfect for racing), a climbing wall, stepping structures, a drum to bang and climbing bars that connect to another platform with a short, bumpy slide. You’ll find a bank of bucket and belt swings for both toddlers and bigger kids situated by the large structure.
There is also a smaller structure designed for ages 2-5. This structure has small dueling slides and a small, bendy slide.
This is a small park. You aren’t going to spend all afternoon there, but it is perfect for a small playdate or a quick energy burn before or after running errands on North Prospect.
Old-fashioned lamps and mature trees line the streets that hug the park. There are also parking spots, benches and a basketball court toward the other side of the median. It’s quaint and quiet — a welcome addition to northwest Champaign.
Emily Harrington is a Chambana townie that left her 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. job to be a 24/7 mom to a dreamy son. Still interested in writing, Emily uses some of naptime to practice her passion and keep her mind right. Emily is a happy wife with a happy life because she fell for a fellow townie. Oh, and let’s not forget her other son, a degenerate canine named Heppenheimer.