WISCONSIN FAMILY

Looking to cool off this summer? Visit these northeastern Wisconsin splash pads

Madison Lammert
Appleton Post-Crescent
The new Gail R. Fischer Family Lily Pad Splash Play opened last year at the Green Bay Botanical Garden.

Looking to beat the heat this summer season?

Thankfully, northeastern Wisconsin has a plethora of splash pad options. These features have a concrete or otherwise safe surface and spray water from multiple points, making it a fun alternative to a swimming pool.

Here's a list of local splashpads, along with their operating hours:

  • Neenah's Washington Park splash pad: 361 Winneconne Ave., open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Memorial Day through Labor Day. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Neenah's Shattuck Park splash pad: 210 E. Wisconsin Ave., open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Memorial Day through Labor Day. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Oshkosh's South Park splash pad: 659 W. South Park Ave. Ray Maurer, the city's parks director, said the equipment operates from roughly 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Bay View Park splash pad: 1137 Vanderbraak St., open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Memorial Day weekend through the second weekend in September. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's CityDeck splash pad: 100 N. Washington St., open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Memorial Day weekend through the second weekend in September. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Eastman Park splash pad: 1240 Eastman Ave., open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Memorial Day weekend through the second weekend in September. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Seymour Park splash pad: 330 S. Oakland Ave., open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Memorial Day weekend through the second weekend in September. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Fisk Park splash pad: 995 Dousman St. It's open daily during the city's other splash pads' hours, but it's only open on Saturdays and Sundays when Green Bay School District is in session. (School starts Aug. 26.) The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Fort Howard Park splash pad: 714 Augusta St. It's open daily during the city's other splash pads' hours, but it's only open on Saturdays and Sundays when Green Bay School District is in session. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Red Smith Park splash pad: 2765 Sussex St. It's open daily during the city's other splash pads' hours, but it's only open on Saturdays and Sundays when Green Bay School District is in session. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Green Bay's Tank Park splash pad: 830 Fifth St. It's open daily during the city's other splash pads' hours, but it's only open on Saturdays and Sundays when Green Bay School District is in session. The splash pad is free to use.
  • Fischer Family Lily Pad Splash Play at the Green Bay Botanical Garden: 2600 Larsen Road, open daily during the Green Bay Botanical Garden's hours (9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily through August, 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. daily in September). The splash pad is part of the Carol and Bruce Bell Children's Garden, which is included with the price of admission. Rachel Muller, the Green Bay Botanical Garden's public relations and content coordinator, said the splash pad is usually turned off near October depending on night temperatures.
  • Howard Commons Activity Complex: 550 Commons Place, open daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Melissa Martinson, the Howard Commons Activity Center director, said the splash pad is open for the season and will be open through Labor Day, possibly longer if weather permits. The splash pad is free to use.

Related:Where can you find inclusive playgrounds in the Fox Valley and beyond?

Some pools, such as Erb Pool in Appleton, contain water features. Since these are part of the pool space, they are often not classified as splash pads. Kaukauna's municipal pool will soon include a splash pad, which the city's Community Enrichment and Recreation Director Terri Vosters said they hope to open in the next few weeks.

There are a few other area splashpads that are set to open later this summer:

  • Sunset Beach in Kimberly is due to wrap up construction on its splash pad in August, said Holly Femal, the village's community enrichment director. It will be included in beach admission, she said.
  • Donna Harlow, Little Chute's Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department program supervisor, said an inclusive splash pad is expected to be installed at Van Lieshout Park by the end of August.
Rendering of the splash pad coming to Little Chute's Van Lieshout Park in 2024.

More:Heart of the Valley communities have 5 new play spaces on the way. Here's what to know

Abra Richardson of The Post-Crescent contributed to this report.

Madison Lammert covers child care and early education across Wisconsin as a Report for America corps member based at The Appleton Post-Crescent. To contact her, email [email protected] or call 920-993-7108. Please consider supporting journalism that informs our democracy with a tax-deductible gift to Report for America by visiting postcrescent.com/RFA.