The snap of many pairs of scissors marked a major milestone for the City of Mishawaka on Thursday, May 23 with the grand opening of its newly redesigned Crawford Park. Updated with many new and improved features and amenities, the park has much to offer for the city residents to enjoy this summer.
“All of our parks are different. We try to make them very unique experiences,” said Mishawaka Mayor David “Dave” Wood. “By design, each park is completely new to our community in that regard. This is our natural wetland and woodland themed park that brings new and inclusive amenities to the area—this is like a little town square for the neighborhood. Crawford Park is where families come to enjoy nature in the city. We're very excited to open this up—it’s just an outstanding example of one of many projects we're doing with the Mishawaka Parks.”
The new Crawford Park was created to bring a unique area to the city, starting with its theme. Centered around a nature park design, the area includes play equipment modeled after nature and plans are underway for future man-made wetlands and trails.
The new play area invites children of all abilities to explore the wonders of nature. The design is wheelchair friendly and there are musical and braille equipment for the visually impaired. The park also features a new splash pad, creating an opportunity for fun for all ages.
Establishing a nature theme was an important aspect for Mishawaka Parks Superintendent Phil Blasko, as the parks department wanted to show just how wonderful it can be for the community to fully embrace the great outdoors.
“Anytime we go into our master plans for our neighborhood parks, we always go to the community. We rely on our neighbors to tell us what they want to see, and that was what came out of our neighborhood meeting,” said Blasko. “From there, we came up with the master plan of what exactly it's going to look like—this is just the first phase of many that we're going to see. We have basketball courts, fishing, and new trails coming as well. Even now, we’re very proud about how much progress has been made because everyone loves the playground. Everyone loves to come out when a new one opens up, and we're building that momentum. We're going to keep on rolling with it into the next phases.”
People of all ages can also benefit from the park’s redesign with the addition of the newly added lawn area. This was added to provide ample opportunities for people to gather for fun outdoor activities such as lawn concerts or movie night events.
Other new adjustments include a new restroom building next to the play area, an addition also convenient for people visiting the Shiojiri Niwa Japanese Garden across the street. Three new picnic shelters and pavilions were additionally added to the new park—one next to the play area, one in the center of the park, and one next to Niles Avenue—so people can gather for a meal with family and friends as they enjoy each other’s company on a gorgeous sunny day.
To accommodate more people coming to the park, multiple sidewalks and boardwalks were also added for easier handicap accessibility. A small off-street parking lot was additionally built at Niles Avenue south of the Linden Avenue intersection.
With many moving parts in place, it was essential to Mishawaka Parks and the City to bring in a quality team to make the magic happen. As the general contractor, Larson-Danielson Construction played a major role in bringing the new park to life. Project Manager Darin Meyer and his team were working hard day in and day out to get the job done, and seeing the final product at Thursday’s event was definitely a sight to see for the entire construction team.
“It's a great park for the community, and they have a great park system here in Mishawaka. As the mayor pointed out, they really do a nice job with the parks,” Meyer said. “To be able to be a part of that system, have that connection, and know that you are a part of building something great for the community to enjoy is a wonderful feeling.”
Now that the park is officially open, Blasko encourages everyone to come check it out this summer. There is plenty to do and much to see, as well as tons of fun memories just waiting to be made.
“This park is such a unique park,” Blasko said. “When we redesign our parks, we try to make sure that each one has something different. This is our nature park, so this has a lot of new amenities for children of any ability to be able to come and enjoy our parks—we really take pride in that. We want to make sure everyone feels welcome when they come to our parks, and Crawford Park does just that.”
To learn more about Crawford Park and the events in store this summer, please visit mishawaka.in.gov/venue/crawford-park. For more information on Larson-Danielson Construction, please visit ldconstruction.com.
