A representative from Midwest Playscapes presented plans for a new playground along the Loring Greenway during a community meeting on Tuesday night but City officials do not have funding to match the proposals.

The Loring Park Greenway Association and Citizens for a Loring Park Community hosted the community meeting at the Loring Park Arts Center with Tim Solomonson of Midwest Playscapes and David Bauer of the City’s Public Works Department. A majority of the people in attendance said they also attended a community meeting about the playground in February.

Loring Park residents are upset with City officials after they removed playground equipment without a plan for replacing it in December. Residents reiterated on Tuesday that many daycares and families with young children utilized the playground and want a playground solution expedited.  Midwest Playscapes can install proposed playground elements within six to eight weeks notice, according to Solomonson.

The former playground area currently has sand for people to play in. Bauer said sprinklers may be added this summer but other temporary playground solutions, such as a set of swings, are “not fit for a municipality” to manage.

A new playground will cost anywhere from $200,000 to $400,000 and would be financed the quickest through a resident-funded special assessment, according to Councilmember Katie Cashman. The City uses special assessments to finance localized improvements including street lighting, public malls, plazas, and courtyards. A special assessment needs to be approved via a resolution by the City Council before it is passed along to residents.

Cashman, who represents the neighborhood, said that without a special assessment the playground would have to be funded through Hennepin County grants and City budget appropriations–neither of which are guarantees.

The previous Loring Greenway playground was removed by the City due to its deteriorating and unsafe condition, which some residents attributed to a lack of maintenance funding.

“The best way to make sure ongoing maintenance happens is in the City budget,” Cashman said. Cashman encouraged meeting attendees to reach out to Mayor Jacob Frey’s office to ask for playground maintenance to be considered in his budget.

Loring Park, a nearby park maintained by the Park & Recreation Board, renovated its playground in 2022. The City's Public Works Department is contracting with Midwest Playscapes to develop possible playground structures for the Loring Greenway on a referral from the Park & Recreation Board.

Volunteers with the Loring Park Greenway Association said they will work with Midwest Playscapes to develop a survey on the different playground options so residents can weigh in on what they'd like to see in the existing space.  

"We're not going to jump ahead and just land on a decision without engaging the community," Bauer said at the meeting.

The City is planning to reconstruct the Loring Greenway starting in 2028.