South Saint Anthony Park Play Area and Courts Project

Project Overview

Renovations to the South Saint Anthony Park Play Area are expected to start in late 2025. Proposed work will focus on the replacement of the existing play equipment and surfacing, and will likely include improvements to the adjacent pavements, seating, and related site amenities. The most recent improvements to this play area were completed in 1994. 

This project is funded by the Common Cent 1% Sales Tax. Read more about the Parks and Recreation 1% Sales Tax Projects.

Project Updates

Ribbon-Cutting Event

Please join us for the Grand Opening of the South Saint Anthony Park renovations on Wednesday, July 8th at noon!

April 2026:

Construction season is upon us! The contractor will start to mobilize for construction on Wednesday, April 1st, with demolition anticipated to start on Monday, April 6th. 

For more information about what the project entails, you can check out the Construction Board, below:

November 2025:

The South Saint Anthony Play Area and Courts construction project has been awarded. The construction start date will be announced soon. Stay tuned!

September 2025:

The South Saint Anthony Play Area project is officially out to bid. The project team looks forward to reviewing bids in October and hopes to be under contract with a construction team in November. 

In other news for this park site, the new pavements surrounding the Rec Center building are expected to be finished by Saturday, September 27th. There is some minor regrading and seeding work to occur surrounding the siding, roofing, and pavement projects that is expected to be completed in the next month.

August 2025:

The South Saint Anthony Play Area project has received permitting approval and is preparing to put the project out to bid in early September.

July 2025:

The South Saint Anthony Rec Center siding and roofing work that has been taking place this spring and summer is nearing the end of completion. This means that the sidewalk improvements for the concrete area surrounding the Rec Center building will begin in August of 2025! Stay tuned for additional information. 

June 2025:

The project team is shepherding the Play Area and Courts project through the permitting process and expects that construction will start in Fall 2025.

April 2025: 

The mature trees within South Saint Anthony Park provide this place with beauty and character, create much needed shade, and serve as an important source of green infrastructure. Although the City had hoped to preserve all of the existing trees surrounding the play area throughout this improvements project, we have reported that four trees adjacent to the Play Area are experience extensive decay. Public safety is our first priority so they will be removed.

October 1, 2024: 

Please note that the existing tennis court at South Saint Anthony Park will be repaired and restriped for tennis and pickleball between Monday October 7th and Thursday October 10th. The tennis court will be closed during this time. For more information on this project and other court restoration projects in Saint Paul, check out the project webpage: https://www.stpaul.gov/departments/parks-and-recreation/design-construction/current-projects/athletic-court-projects 

September 2024: Community Engagement Event

See below for the boards that were presented at the Ice Cream Social Event on September 14th.

July 2024: Concept Options & Survey #2

See below for the concept options we presented at the July 13th, 2024 Pop-Up Community Engagement Event!

Or, click on the link below to see the concept options we presented at the July 13th, 2024 Pop-Up Community Engagement Event!

Please take the South St. Anthony Park Play Area - Survey #2 to share a bit about your desired play features and priorities for the Play Area.

This survey will close on Friday, July 26th at 5 PM.

July 13th, 2024 - Pop-Up Community Engagement Event

Do you or your family like to play at the South St. Anthony Park Play Area? Would you like to participate in the redesign of this exciting project?

Please join the City of Saint Paul Parks & Recreation Department’s Design and Construction Team for a Pop-Up Event in South St. Anthony Park!

Who: You and anyone you know who uses the South St. Anthony Park Play Area
What: Pop-Up Community Engagement Event
Where: South St. Anthony Park (890 Cromwell Ave, Saint Paul, MN 55114)
In the play area, near the northern-most corner of park, near the Intersection of Cromwell Avenue and Bayless Place
When: Saturday, July 13th from 9:30 AM – 11 AM
Why: For the design team to hear your thoughts on different concepts and play features for the 2025 Play Area Reconstruction in the South St. Anthony Park Play Area. Stop by to say “Hi,” grab some treats, and get excited about the changes to come!

If you are unable to stop by to chat with us at this time and date, please come back to visit the project’s website for a link to Survey #2 or email us at Meredith.Ver.Steeg@ci.stpaul.mn.us to let us know if you would like to stay involved.

June 13th, 2024: Community Meeting

All are welcome and encouraged to attend the St. Anthony Park Community Council Board Meeting on Thursday, June 13th at 7 PM. The Parks & Recreation Department's Design and Construction project team for the South St. Anthony Park Play Area will present an analysis of the existing conditions, the results of Survey #1, three schematic play area design options, play area precedent images, and they will also be collecting feedback on all that they present.

This hybrid event will take place in person at 2172 University Avenue West in Saint Paul, MN. To attend the meeting online, please email info@sapcc.org for the Zoom link.

See the presentation document, which includes an overview of the project analysis, survey results, and includes the preliminary concept designs for the play area, by clicking the link below:

May 2024: Survey #1

Please take the South St. Anthony Park Play Area Survey to tell the project team what you would like to have included in the playground reconstruction. 

This survey closed on Friday, June 7th at 5 PM.

April 20th, 2024: Earth Day Clean-Up Event

The design team attended the Earth Day Cleanup with Saint Anthony Park Community Council members. We dispersed links to Survey #1 as well as spread the word about the upcoming project happenings and how to stay involved in and informed about the project.

March 2024: Project Start

We are beginning the process of replacing the play area at the South Saint Anthony Park Play Area. The first step in this process is to collect site information about the existing play area, gather feedback from park users, and prepare an analysis of the existing play area. We will then be able to develop ideas and plans for a new play area. During this process we will be working with the community to obtain feedback about those ideas and plans. Once refined, we will develop construction documents and start the construction of the new play area. 

Our preliminary schedule for this project is as follows:

Contact

Project Manager
Meredith Ver Steeg
Saint Paul Parks and Recreation
meredith.ver.steeg@ci.stpaul.mn.us
P: (651) 266-6695

Project Address
890 Cromwell Ave.
Saint Paul, MN 55114

Project Funding
Parks and Recreation 1% Sales Tax