After year-long delay, playground renovations at Wilmette’s Maple Park likely to start in August

A renovation project that was initially set to begin in 2020 is swinging back into action in Wilmette. 

The park district’s plans to update and upgrade the playground at community-favorite Maple Park will likely begin later this summer, officials told The Record. 

Maple Park’s playground has been scheduled for removal since 2019 but the park district tabled the project in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Kristi Solberg, the Wilmette Park District’s superintendent of parks and planning, said the renovation could begin in August, depending on the arrival of playground equipment. She added that the targeted completion date right now is November. 

The playground will be closed for the duration of project work, Solberg said. 

The park district is planning to bring in new surfacing, new equipment and a new ADA-accessible bridge. 

In a memo sent to the Wilmette Park Board’s park and recreation committee, Solberg said “the playground was chosen for replacement due to the age of the equipment (built in 1995) and the playground surfacing (sand) that no longer meets playground standards.”

Solberg said in the memo that the total cost of the project is expected to be $274,765. 

The park district, alongside Upland Design, the planning firm contracted to lead the project, held two public meetings earlier this year to seek “feedback regarding the current playground and the future of the site. 

According to Soldberg, community feedback throughout the process has been “very positive” and residents were “happy to be a part of the design.”