Someone spray painted swastikas on Edgerton’s new-look Glendell Acres Park a little more than a week after a small crowd helped unveil the park’s renovations, which were years in the making.
The city is now trying to clean off the hateful graffiti. Earlier this week, two swastikas could be seen on the tops of the park’s new playground equipment.
When exactly the vandalism occurred is unknown, officials say.
Kara Banks, assistant to the Edgerton city manager, said a neighbor reported the discovery to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Department just days after a formal ribbon-cutting event celebrated the park’s improvements on Saturday, Nov. 9.
“I am deeply disappointed that someone would vandalize a park that only opened a week ago,” Mayor Don Roberts said. “Parks are meant to bring people together. The individual or individuals that did this obviously want to divide, but we will come together to find who did this. This park is a place that we love and will continue to use to come together for years to come.”
City officials as of the publication of this story had not determined the cost the graffiti incurred.
There is no police tape surrounding the park, and the new playground and refurbished skate ramp nearby are still accessible for public use.
In a statement, the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office said there are no leads at this time, but investigators encourage anyone with any information to call their non-emergency line. The case remains active.
Edgerton urges anyone with information to call the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office at 913-782-0720 and reference case number #24004443.
‘A hidden gem’
Nestled in a neighborhood off Edgewood Drive between Third and Fourth streets, the newly renovated Glendell Acres Park welcomed a crowd on Nov. 9 for its grand reopening.
At the event, city officials lauded the new park, its amenities and atmosphere.
“It is kind of a hidden gem,” city Councilmember Deb Lebakken said. “It opens up this world, and all of a sudden you see this huge slide in front of you. It’s just kind of magical — all of a sudden you are in a magical place of fun, but it’s still secluded, and it just feels safe.”
Mayor Roberts said he hadn’t expected the high turnout for the park’s reopening day.
“As you can see, the park is going to be well-utilized with the youngsters. They haven’t stopped playing since I got here,” he said.
Roberts said the process to rehab the park took years going through several iterations, a public engagement process and gathering feedback that included input from Edgerton Elementary students.
“There was a lot of thought in making this an all-inclusive park for seniors, teenage kids, younger kids and really for all of us to come together,” he said on Nov. 9.
The park’s new amenities include the replacement of the former playground with a new playground that has two giant slides, as well as a fitness obstacle course, a picnic pavilion that can be reserved for free, a water fountain with dog drinking station, an all-wheels skate ramp and scenic loop walking trail.
“The new slides are the tallest and fastest slides Edgerton has had in a park,” Roberts said.
SWT Design, with an office in Kansas City, Missouri, integrated local limestone into the park’s seating and signage.
Roberts said native plants and elements were incorporated into the park, along with rain gardens to handle storm water.
Roberts said the biggest stumbling block was the huge pipeline that runs through the park that took the city time to obtain easements needed for the placement of the new sidewalk.
“Everything was designed around the pipeline so it wasn’t intrusive,” he said.
Construction and park history
The city spent nearly $1.16 million on the project.
Overall, the process of planning the renovations, securing funding and carrying out the work took four years, with construction beginning in 2022.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment gave the city a $25,000 grant for the playground surface made of recycled tires.
Roberts said the new surface was a safety improvement to the park that saved the city a significant amount of money.
Fifteen years after Edgerton teenagers raised $1,500 for a $17,000 skate park on a former neighborhood basketball court, a new all-wheels skate park sits in its place north of the playground.
Roberts said it had been greatly improved since the original one.
