Aquatic Park Playground

Berkeley Garden Club Keeps Ecology Garden Looking Good at Dreamland

Members of the BGC Civic Beautification Committee inventory the coastal plant beds in the Ecology Garden at Aquatic Park. Evelyn Humphrey, master gardener. Rhoda Alvarez, Sherrill Reeves.

Fall 2002 Pruning woody perennials that rapidly overgrew the border grasses. Mildred Bennett, Conservation Committee Chairman. Delcye Bailey, Civic Beautification Committee Chairman.

The butterfly hummingbird attracting native Ecology Garden at Aquatic Park’s Dreamland for Kids has grown in the last year to be quite spectacular. Thanks goes to the Berkeley Garden Club Civic Beautification Committee for maintaining and cataloguing the plants in the Ecology Garden. For information about the Berkeley Garden Club, contact Delcye Bailey at 547-4165.

To add a kid-pleasing feature to the garden, community members decided to add an interactive water feature. The feature has been designed gratis by the Berkeley firm MIG and will feature a child-activated trickling stream and water-tolerant plants. Thanks to MIG for the community spirit.

Lions Build Picnic Area at Dreamland

Mayor Shirley Dean and Lion Gary Yee

The Berkeley, Albany, West Berkeley and Kensington Lions Clubs came out in May 2001 and built a beautiful new picnic area for Dreamland for Kids. The Lions previously built much of the fence during the playground build, and this came in handy for the picnic area project. Gary Yee took on and coordinated the project for the Lions, and contractor Michael McDowell led the construction efforts. The picnic area is already getting lots of use. Thanks Lions!

Dream Land for Kids Opens at Aquatic Park
Dream Land for Kids Open to Public

See Photos, More Photos, B&W Photos from May 18 - May 21, 2000 build
See Photos, More Photos, B&W Photos from May 31 - June 4, 2000 build

For questions or to get on BPFPs email List, email ZasaSwanson@EminentSoftware.com

On November 16, 1999, children from Berkeley's Elementary Schools met with architect Bob Leathers to translate their wildest ideas into a playground plan presented that evening. Read the San Francisco Chronicle article. Joseph Newell, a 9 year old from Washington School, won the Name the Playground Contest by coming up with the playground name kids voted as their favorite, "Dream Land for Kids".

On May 18 - May 21 and May 31 - June 4, 2000, over 2,000 volunteers built Dream Land for Kids in Aquatic Park. Service groups, high school students, parents, school children and people from all walks of life helped out.

We still need help laying bricks, and putting in an ecology garden. Contact Zasa at 510-649-9874 or zasaswanson@eminentsoftware.com to get involved.

Location of Aquatic Park Playground

Playground Plans

Major Donors

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Article about Robert Leathers Playgrounds
Citizen's Lend Hearts and Hands To Create Playgrounds For Kids