March 26, 2024
Are you staying in town for spring break? If so, we have lots of fun opportunities for you!
Experience the adventure of one or more of many Fort Wayne Park playgrounds. Thanks to allocated funds from the City of Fort Wayne and City Council, Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation is busy replacing ten neighborhood playgrounds around the city. If your neighborhood park is under construction, we recommend making some new memories while visiting one of the following park playgrounds:
- Franke Park
- Indian Village Playground
- Memorial Park
- Buckner Park
- Promenade Park
For more information about the neighborhood park playgrounds projects, visit FortWayneParks.org.
Bring your littles to the Fort Wayne Parks & Recreation Community Center for the Children’s Book Swap & Sale. Youth can swap up to five books and purchase unlimited books starting at twenty-five cents to one dollar per book. It’s planned for Tuesday to Thursday, April 2 to 4, from 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. The Community Center is located at 233 West Main Street with parking off of Berry Street.
It’s free to try your hand at Disc Golf at one of the five courses in city parks.
- East Swinney Park, has 18 holes which wrap around Swinny Pond and along the St. Marys River. West Swinney Park, 1600 W. Jefferson Blvd., in central Fort Wayne boasts 18 baskets which play along the river and around a pond with small hills and large trees.
- Shoaff Park, 6401 St. Joe Road, in northeast Fort Wayne has 24 holes in a mix of open fairways and wooded challenges.
- Bob Arnold Northside Park, at East State Blvd. and Parnell Avenue, in the city’s north central neighborhood is a nine-hole course with a mix of trees and open space.
- Weisser Park, 3000 Hanna Street, is the newest course and was designed, funded and installed by students at Weisser Park Elementary in 2023 with assistance from Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation. You’ll find nine-holes in a wooded course with shorter distances.
- Tillman Park, 600 Tillman Road, on the south side offers a challenging 19-hole course for experienced players.
Visit FortWayneParks.org for descriptions of each park and its amenities. If you’re new to the sport, you can find resources with the nonprofit Fort Disc Golf Club online at http://www.fortdiscgolf.com.
Discover family-friendly traditional golf at four distinctly different public golf courses and two driving ranges. Special discounts are available:
Did you know that kids up to age 14 play free with each paying adult after 6:00 p.m. at Foster, Shoaff and McMillen and any time during public play at the Mad Anthony III’s?
Students can receive $2 off greens fees at Shoaff and Foster Park Golf Courses. College and high school students will need to show a current school I.D.
The Weekday twilight special offers a reduced greens fee after 6:00 p.m. Monday to Friday at Foster ($8) and Shoaff ($7) Golf Courses (not available for leagues, outings or tournaments).
- Foster Park Golf Course located at Rudisill Blvd. and Old Mill Road.
Due to the on-going construction of the Deep Rock Tunnel Sewer Project in Foster Park, the front nine will have a couple of temporary tees and greens starting in the 2024 golfing season and will last for an undetermined amount of time:
- Hole number four will have a temporary green.
- Two holes will play from shorter tees.
- The par on the front nine will be 34, which will make par for the course 34-35/69.
- Shoaff Park Golf Course and Driving Range located at 6401 St. Joe Road.
- McMillen Park Golf Course and Driving Range located at Oxford Street east of Anthony Blvd.
- Mad Anthony III’s short course is located at McMillen Park.
Racers ready—Rev your engines in the Conservatory’s exhibit, Botanical Speedway! Kids will pedal along and burn some rubber on a tropical racetrack as part of this exciting family outing. This exhibit is available until April 7 and is included with regular admission which is $7 per adult and $5 for youth ages 3-17. Kids age two and younger are admitted free. Sponsored by: English, Bonter, Mitchell Foundation, Howard P. Arnold Foundation, Magee-O’Conner Foundation, Fort Wayne Park Foundation, WANE 15 and 103.9 Wayne FM.
Put on your paleontologist hat and create simple clay fossils out of air-dry clay at the Salomon Farm Park Learning Center. Next, build a wooden crate out of popsicle sticks for the fossils to be transported to the museum or research lab. This class is scheduled for Monday, April 8, is designed for ages 6-12. The fee is $18 per child. Find more information and register online at FortWayneParks.org or call 260-427-6000 during regular business hours. Registration is
requested by April 1.
There’s so much fun to discover in Fort Wayne this spring. Hope to see you in the Parks!
