photo by: Rochelle Valverde

The new splash pad at Burroughs Creek park, 900 E. 15th St., is pictured on June 22, 2022.

The City of Lawrence is preparing to open its first splash pad in the coming days.

The splash pad will be operational 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily through most of the summer season, starting Wednesday, July 6, according to a city news release. The 2,500-square-foot splash park includes eight water features.

The city also announced plans to hold a ribbon-cutting for the splash pad, which is located along the north side of Burroughs Creek Trail and Linear Park near the trail crossing at 15th Street. The ribbon-cutting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Tuesday. For those attending the ribbon-cutting, there is limited parking onsite with small lots on the north side of 15th Street near the playground and splash pad. Other on-street parking is available on Maryland Street just south of the splash pad off 15th Street.

The 2017 Parks and Recreation Master Plan calls for the creation of four to six spray parks located in neighborhood areas to provide water activities for the summer as well as part of the spring and fall when pools aren’t operating. East Lawrence residents have pushed for the project to improve recreation options for children, and city leaders approved funding for the project as part of the city’s 2021 budget. City leaders later voted last summer to increase the budget for the project to $372,500 so the splash pad could include a more sustainable water-recirculating system. The city is preparing to build a second splash pad in Lyons Park in North Lawrence, and adding a splash pad to South Park has been included in future capital plans.