June 8, 2026
By Tim Hundt – VernonReporter.com
VIROQUA Wis. – After years of planning and fundraising the long awaited rebuild of Eckhart Park’s main playground is now on a firm timeline with demolition set for mid July and a community build week scheduled for late September.
Parks and Recreation Director Kale Proksch told the Viroqua Public Works Committee last week that design details are nearly finalized and that the next few weeks will focus on ordering materials lining up volunteers and preparing the site.
He said the city is working from updated playground drawings that shift equipment slightly away from mature trees and fine tune the location of picnic tables and fencing to meet safety standards.
“The drawings are pretty much finalized,” said Proksch. “We tried to get away from the trees a little bit more so they pushed all the fall zones as close to the fence as they could, and then the big thing you’ll notice is we are playing around with the cement pad and trying to move that down.”
Clearer layout in Eckhart Park
The new layout keeps the large play structure within required fall zones and adjusts the concrete pad and picnic tables so families can still gather near the playground without creeping into safety areas.
Proksch said the biggest visible change is that the four planned picnic tables will no longer sit in a perfect rectangle. Two tables on the right side will shift slightly south to avoid the fall zone from an access ramp.
“We wanted to keep those picnic tables those four picnic tables in a straight line but the two on the right side can’t be in the yellow fall zone from that ramp going up so that’s why they’re down a little bit,” said Proksch. “So I just want to make sure that you guys are okay with that because we’re waiting on fence the linear fence feet to get that ordered and wood chips to get that ordered.”
Committee members voiced support for the change with Chair Steve Willis saying the exact alignment is less important than long term durability and safety.
“I like it and I don’t really think it matters if they’re in a straight line because they are not movable right,” said Willis. “Those will be set in concrete.”
Proksch said the adjustment gives the design team the certainty they need to move ahead with major purchases.
“If you’re okay with kind of pushing those two right side picnic tables down it’s not going to be a perfect square now so it’s going to jut out a little bit,” said Proksch. “Other than that that’s kind of the design the reason I’m bringing this to you. If you guys are okay with that the two picnic tables down a little bit.”
Big volume of wood chips and fence
The scale of the project will be evident in the materials alone. Proksch said the current design requires about 600 cubic yards of certified wood chips for fall protection and around 600 feet of perimeter fencing. Committee approval of the picnic table adjustment clears the way for staff to finalize those orders so the materials are on hand before the late September build.
Community build week set for late September
The new playground is planned as a community build project that will rely on volunteers working alongside the organizing nonprofit and city staff over several days.Proksch said organizers are targeting a build window from Sept. 28 through Oct. 3 but are mindful that weather could force adjustments.
“We have a leadership meeting next Wednesday so we’ll hear from all the committees and how the volunteers are coming and the fundraising is coming,” said Proksch. “We are still fundraising but things are looking good for this project. And again September 28 if you guys are free through October 3 is when we’re hoping to build.”
Teardown date set for existing playground
The current playground structure in Eckhart Park has a firm end date. Proksch said city crews plan to start tearing down the existing equipment on July 13 with July 12 set as the final day for public use.
The timing is coordinated with the Driftless Music Festival which is scheduled in the park on July 11. Willis noted that the festival will likely be the last big public use of the current playground before removal.
Planter exposes old fountain adding to future possibilities
During his update Proksch also raised a smaller but symbolic decision point in Eckhart Park. A circular planter in the middle of the main walkway turned out to be a capped fountain basin with no drainage once staff began to dig into it.
He asked whether the committee wanted to break through the bottom to add drainage or simply treat it as a shallow bed.
“I guess I wanted to ask you guys are you okay with planting in there or breaking up the bottom of it so we could get some drainage,” said Proksch. “I don’t think we’ll ever use that as a fountain again.”
Public urges city to keep the fountain idea alive
In the second public comment period architect and resident Gregory Splinter who has been active in park design discussions urged the city not to give up on the idea of a working fountain in Eckhart.
Splinter said his understanding from past Historic Preservation Commission work was that the feature was turned off due to maintenance concerns not by design.
“My understanding was that they shut that down only because of maintenance that they shut the fountain down only because of maintenance,” said Splinter.
He asked the committee to imagine what a restored water feature could do for the feel of the park even if it is outside the current playground budget.
“If we could just imagine just for a second what it would be like to have clear beautiful water in the tiled fountain that’s shooting water in the spray the sound that splashing sound what that would be like and it would animate that the entire park in a way that would be almost beyond what we could imagine,” said Splinter. “I know it’d be some money and all that sort of stuff but I could imagine somebody coming to Viroqua and then seeing that fountain in action again simple small but it would really give another layer of specialness to the beauty of the park.”
Splinter also pointed to the city’s own capital improvement list for Eckhart which references water fountains and restroom doors and suggested staff make sure that language can accommodate a single restored fountain.
“On your list of priorities under Eckhart Park it said water fountains restroom doors and water fountains,” said Splinter. “So I would suggest what you do just take that S off of fountains and turn it into water fountain.”
Eckhart Park as the city’s flagship
Although much of the detailed discussion focused on layout and construction logistics city staff and committee members have consistently described Eckhart as Viroqua’s flagship park.
In a broader capital projects discussion later in the meeting City Administrator Nate Torres referred to the playground overhaul as part of a much larger investment in Eckhart’s long-term health that draws families from across the area. That status has helped elevate Eckhart’s projects on the city’s capital improvement list in recent years from the volunteer built playground now moving into the construction phase to future work on restrooms water features and shelters.
For now the most visible changes will come in two stages. Residents will see the existing playground disappear after July 12 and then watch a new structure rise during the community build week in late September and early October.
Proksch said staff volunteer leaders and fundraising teams are working toward the same goal.
“As you can see it’s coming along,” said Proksch. “We are still fundraising but things are looking good for this project.”
Timeline at a glance
- July 11 – Driftless Music Festival in Eckhart Park
- July 12 – Final day for public use of the existing playground
- July 13 – City crews begin teardown of old playground equipment
- Sept. 28 through Oct. 3 – Planned community build week for the new playground schedule weather dependent
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