See the unique playground in this Johnson County park after 6-month renovation
A popular Johnson County park will reopen in phases after being closed for several months while undergoing an extensive renovation.
Visitors to Gum Springs Park in Shawnee will notice lots of improvements at the park when it reopens fully by the spring of 2024. The park at 67th and Flint Streets has undergone a $3.7 million face-lift. Some park amenities will reopen in phases throughout the remainder of 2023.
Renovations include the removal of an old asphalt trail and the installation a new eight-foot wide concrete walking path around the perimeter of the 9.7-acre park. In addition to the walking path, improvements were made to the four baseball fields which include new fencing, updated backstops and new dugout boxes.
A 30-foot-tall hot air balloon play structure, dubbed, “Lunia” is the centerpiece of a new, modern playground with play and climbing equipment from Berliner Play Equipment. Bonded rubber safety surfacing surrounds the new playground, which includes several other brightly-colored climb and play structures. A recently installed restroom building, which opened in September of 2022, is steps away from the new playground.
The Parks and Pipes sales tax, a 1/8 cent citywide sales tax, funded the renovations at the park. Sands Construction is the general contractor on the project.
This story reflects a change from the originally published version to provide clarity to the opening date of the park.
This story was originally published November 27, 2023 at 5:30 AM.
