EVERETT — The Everett City Council voted Wednesday to appropriate $940,000 toward the renovation of Garfield Park, located in the city’s northeast Riverside neighborhood.
The construction work, expected to take place in 2026, will renovate the playground area of the park, which is 19 years old and exceeds the city’s life-cycle standard of 15 years, a city memo read.
The new park design — chosen with the help of a community survey and input from the Riverside Neighborhood Association — features several slides, climbers, a separate 2 to 5-year-old play area, integrated shade sails and inclusive play features throughout, said Cory Rettenmeier, the recreation and golf manager at Everett’s park department.
The playground will also include a cable-free “zip track” ride and a large bank of swings. It will also be surfaced with new play turf for improved safety, accessibility and cleanliness, Rettenmeier wrote in an email.
Construction is planned to occur in late spring or early fall 2026, depending on the time it takes to complete permitting and equipment fabrication, he wrote. If the project is not completed in the spring, the city will keep the playground open during the summer months and begin renovations after local schools are back in session to minimize disruption to the neighborhood, Rettenmeier wrote.
In 1931, the Riverside Chamber of Commerce purchased the land that became Garfield Park and later donated it to the city, according to local nonprofit Historic Everett. The park has gone through major renovations in the 1970s and the early 2000s.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
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