Brookland Park will be having a park improvement project to replace the entire playground with new equipment and to add ADA accessible path connections. The project is expected to start construction in the Spring of 2025.

Members of the community were invited to give their feedback on potential changes at a public input open house held on Wed. May 8, 2024 at the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center.

An online survey was available for the public to give input on the project. This survey was available for 10 days, through Sat. May 18, 2024.

The pickleball and tennis courts at both Mercer Park and City Park were closed in Fall of 2023 as part of a planned renovation project. The Mercer Park courts reopened July 16, 2024. Progress on the City Park courts have been delayed due to high ground water and rain, and are anticipated to reopen late-early-fall 2024.

The Mercer Park renovations include the installation of new fencing and the construction of an entirely new foundation for both the pickleball and tennis courts on the pre-existing site. The new courts include 9 pickleball courts and 2 tennis ball courts. The tennis courts include painted lines to allow park visitors to play pickleball.

The City Park renovations include the installation of new fencing and the construction of a new foundation for the tennis courts on the pre-existing site. The City Park tennis courts will include painted lines to allow park visitors to play pickleball.

College Green Park will be having a park improvement project to replace the entire playground and basketball court. The rest of the park will not be impacted. The project is expected to start construction in the Spring of 2025.

Members of the community were invited to give their feedback on potential changes to the park at a public input open house held on Wed. May 8, 2024 at the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center.

An online survey was avilable for the public to give input on the playground themes and play experiences. This survey was available for 10 days, through Sat. May 18, 2024.

The City will be replacing an existing ¼ mile section of the Court Hill Trail. The section of the trail extends from Beech Street to Scott Boulevard (Project location map).

The existing asphalt trail is 8-feet wide. After many years of use and weathering, the condition of the pavement has deteriorated and requires a full replacement.

The new trail will be 10-feet wide and made of concrete pavement. The new trail is planned to be in nearly the same footprint as the existing trail. In addition to the trail, the west half of the trail crossing on Scott Boulevard will also be replaced with new concrete pavement. The trail connection to Beech will also be improved.  Improvements in storm water drainage will also be made with the addition of storm sewers and intakes to mitigate storm water and snow melt water flowing over the new trail.

 On Oct. 24, 2024 a public meeting was held at Scott Park for a discussion about the trail replacement project. The trail is scheduled for construction starting next spring in April 2025. It is expected the trail would reopen in mid-Summer 2025. A project map was shared showing the proposed improvements and a copy is available to download.

For more information about this project, contact Civil Engineer Tyler Olson at 319-356-5416 or tolson@iowa-city.org.

Iowa City Parks and Recreation will be developing a new park in the Shannon Drive area near West High School. Look at the link below to see where the park will reside. The park will include new sidewalks, new playground equipment and a new park shelter. The project is expected to begin construction in the Spring of 2025. 

New Park on Shannon Drive

Members of the community were invited to give their feedback on potential layouts, amenities and playground styles at the public input open house held on Wed. May 8, 2024 at the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center.

An online survey was available for the public to give input on the project regarding the park name, amenities, playground theme, and conceptual park layout. This survey was available for 10 days, through Sat. May 18, 2024.

The City will be planting numerous trees in public rights-of-way during fall 2024. In addition to infill planting locations throughout Iowa City, two regions will be receiving a large number of trees. These regions include the area surrounding the South of 6 Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District and an area along and near Mormon Trek Blvd between Willow Creek/Kiwanis Parks and West High School. Maps highlighting the areas can be found below.

Neighborhoods where plantings will occur will be notified through outreach efforts during the spring/summer seasons. Upon notification, residents with property adjacent to the planting sites will be provided an opportunity to opt-out of the planting. The City will remain responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the trees planted in the right-of-way, but residents are encouraged to help water the newly planted trees if they are inclined.

The addition of new trees provides many benefits for the neighborhoods, such as decreasing water runoff and limiting flooding, decreasing carbon dioxide buildup and providing shade to help the surrounding residents save on energy bills. For more information about this project, contact Parks & Forestry Superintendent Tyler Baird at 319-356-5100 (ext. 2069) or at  tbaird@iowa-city.org.

Below is a map of the region receiving trees.

• 2024 Tree Location Overview