Mathew’s Park playground updates completed

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The new playground structures at Mathew’s Park are open to the community after delays caused the opening date to be pushed back a couple of times.

The playground officially opened on October 11th, although landscaping and parking lot upgrades are still underway.

Ryan Harvey, communications manager with the City of Fort St. John, said supply chain challenges with the playground equipment caused delays during construction.

“Then, the tile installation didn’t quite go as planned the first time, so we had to redo that,” Harvey said.

During the final inspections before the park was set to reopen in August, the city discovered the rubberized tile surfacing was not installed correctly and failed to meet safety standards.

“But thankfully, it’s open now, and people can use it,” Harvey said.

The previous equipment had reached the end of its lifespan and was replaced with two different structures based on feedback from the community in 2022.

“One of those is a smaller, what we’d call a traditional play structure that is designed for little kids. It includes a couple of slides and some stairs,” Harvey explained.

“Also included is an obstacle, agility course, aimed at some of the older kids and teenagers, which was certainly something we heard during the public engagement feedback.”

Harvey said the new equipment is being “well utilized” ahead of the coming winter.