
Urbana Park District seeks community input to create future goals
The Urbana Park District is asking residents to fill out a survey and participate in focus groups to help guide the creation of their 2027-2031 Strategic Plan.

The Urbana Park District is asking residents to fill out a survey and participate in focus groups to help guide the creation of their 2027-2031 Strategic Plan.

Champaign-Urbana Special Recreation was founded in 1985 and has been providing year-round opportunities for children and adults with disabilities, such as afterschool programs, overnight trips, special Olympics and summer day camps.

After over 20 years of weathered playground amenities, King Park in Urbana will be restored and revitalized. The plans include more accessible walkways, basketball courts, a teen hangout terrace and an outdoor classroom.

In the coming years, the Urbana Park District is planning to install new sports facilities, paved walking trails, and a spray ground among other amenities in Prairie Park and Weaver Park.

The Urbana Park District recently acquired two marble sculptures for its permanent art display at Meadowbrook Park. Sculpted into a slab of swirling diverted petals, artist Jon Isherwood titled them “The Gifting Angel” and “After Giverny,” referencing impressionist artist Claude Monet’s waterlilies.

The Urbana Park District and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) recently completed the first phase of a restoration project at Crystal Lake Park to help restore habitat, native plants and improve the health of fish. The restoration project is part of a long-term effort to clean up the Saline Branch (which flows through