ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) – The Star City is celebrating the expansion of its parks and recreation facilities. Early Thursday morning, we joined officials at the groundbreaking ceremony for the renovation of a recreation center in the northwest.
WDBJ7 spoke to the planning and development coordinator, who says all of these renovations are based on the master plan from five years ago.
Katie Slusher worked with PLAY Roanoke to renovate four parks in our hometown.
Eureka Park, Washington Pool Park, In-River Park and Wasena Skatepark will be redesigned over the next two years.
The first project we will see completed is Washington Pool Park. Next summer, you can dive into even more fun as Washington Park Pool will have a new look.
“It will have many of the features that are really most important to people in our operation: wading pool, a small lazy river, a zero-entry area, a large slide and also a couple of swimming lanes,” Slusher said.
The new skate park is scheduled to be completed in early 2026. Based on feedback from several years ago, Slusher said the skate park will include many street skating elements.
“It will be in Wasena Park, not under the bridge as before, but now next to the bridge so we can work on the construction at the same time as the bridge is being built,” Slusher said.
Eureka Park will double in size in spring 2026. New improvements to the gym and brand new common rooms and work areas.
In 2026, the community can expect In River Park to be accessible to all with a new ADA river access.
“It’s just an informal stretch of shoreline that people walk along. We love it to bits. A little bit anyway. It’s starting to erode, which is affecting the health of that shoreline, so this project will improve those access points for the public,” Slusher said.
Slusher said they are hungry for feedback for their 2024 master plan. She can’t wait to see all these new renovations completed.
“It’s been a hectic five years, so we want to check in with people and see if their priorities for our department are still the same or if they’ve changed,” Slusher said.
PLAY Roanoke is asking for suggestions on what you would like to see implemented in your local parks. All information is available on our website.
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