Recreation Activities Open in Kearney

Memorial Day Weekend is the unofficial start to summer and that means outdoor recreation activities begin to open to the public.

Lion’s Park Splash Pad

The Kearney Parks and Recreation Department will turn on the Lion’s Park Splash Pad on Friday, May 26, and to the delight of kids in town, the big blue bucket will once again start pouring water.

The Lion’s Park Splash Pad officially opened on Friday, June 18, 2021, following two years of anticipation in the community. It was part of revitalization of the entire park which included new playground equipment, new seating areas, an expanded parking area, a new bandstand, and updated bathrooms and picnic shelters.

The Splash Pad will open at 10 am on Friday and is operational from 10 am – 8 pm daily until Labor Day.

Pickleball and Skate Park

This Friday the brand-new Kearney Pickleball and Skate Park Complex will be open at 5 pm.

The City of Kearney won the Missouri Municipal League Innovation Award for Medium Cities for its Pickleball and Skate Park Complex. The project started in 2017 when the City and Kearney School District converted old tennis courts into three pickleball courts and a skate park.

The city soon realized that a new facility would be needed and began to construct a new 12-court pickleball facility with LED lighting, bleachers, permanent bathrooms, asphalt parking for more than 70 vehicles, a storage building, and new skatepark surface.

KPGZ News - Brian Watts contributed to this story