The New Ulm Planning Commission recommended the replacement of equipment in both parks during Monday’s meeting.

Park and Recreation Director Joey Schugel said city staff has been working on a playground replacement schedule to identify playgrounds in need of replacing. A playground replacement fund was created in 2024 due to the number of playgrounds reaching the end of useful life. There is $325,000 available in the replacement funds. Washington Park playground was one of the first parks prioritized for replacement.

“Washington Park playground is our oldest playground in the system,” Schugel said. “It was installed in September 1999. That playground is heavily used with proximity to New Ulm Area Catholic Schools, high neighborhood use and as well as some of the park features such as the baseball field and wading pool.”

The playground equipment for 5- to 12-year-olds is the focus for replacement. Schugel said once playgrounds reach a few decades of age, it becomes difficult to find replacement parts. One of the slides on Washington Playground was taken off last year and has not been replaced.

Park and Recreation Commission recommended relocating and replacing equipment at Lincoln Park. The spinner and swing are reusable play features and will be relocated to the main playground area. The wood chip container area of the tot lot would be eliminated and turned back to native grass. Photo by Clay Schuldt

Not all of the equipment at Washington Park will be removed. A smaller playground section on the western edge will be kept as it is only 15 years old.

Part of the proposal for replacing equipment at Washington Park includes reducing the size of the playground container. The container refers to the area with wood chips surrounding the equipment.

Schugel said there is a lot of open space within the playground container. By placing the equipment closer to each other, the overall size of the container will be reduced. By reducing the wood chip container for the park, the city will save on yearly maintenance.

The new equipment will be provided by Flagship Recreation. Three different playground design concepts were created by Flagship Recreation. All three were shown to a group of New Ulm Area Catholic School students, who were expected to use the equipment the most. The top-voted option was selected for installation.

“Anytime we look to replace a playground in our system, we’re looking for some unique pieces that we don’t currently have in any of our parks,” Schugel said. “You will see some of those things in those concepts.”

A concept design for the new playground equipment at Washington Park. Park and Recreation Director Joey Schugel said: “Anytime we look to replace a playground in our system, we’re looking for some unique pieces that we don’t currently have in any of our parks.” Submitted photo

Schugel said the cost of the playground equipment and installation will be $178,815.17.

The Lincoln Park playground recommendation was to relocate and replace the 2- to 5-year-old equipment. Schugel said this equipment, called the tot lot, sees a lot of use because it is located next to the wading pool in Lincoln Park. The container for the tot lot is relatively large for the amount of equipment in it. Staff decided to relocate and replace the tot lot equipment closer to the main playground equipment in Lincoln Park. This will allow the elimination of the container and save on maintenance. The main playground container area will need to be slightly expanded with the addition of the tot lot equipment.

Schugel said the new play feature for Lincoln Park will also be ordered through Flagship Recreation. By ordering the equipment for both parks at the same time the city will save on shipping and installation costs. The cost of the new Lincoln Park equipment including installation is $29,375.21.

The Park and Recreation Commission recommended approval of both playground projects.

Final approval of the playground equipment replacement will come before the New Ulm City Council.

A concept design for new toddler equipment at Lincoln Park playground.