Underwood Park Wading Pool Could Become Splash Pad

Milwaukee County Parks Splash pad. Photo by Milwaukee County Parks.

Milwaukee County Parks is trying to secure funding to convert the wading pool at Will-O-Way Underwood Park into a splash pad, which could be more widely used by the public and increase accessibility for people that use wheelchairs.

The park, located on the far West Side, near the county grounds, is home to one of the county’s two Wil-O-Way facilities, which are recreational centers providing disability-related programming, as well as summer camps for children and young adults. The other facility is in Grant Park.

Mike Bonk, director of the county’s Aging and Disabilities Services, said in a letter that a splash pad would allow people using wheelchairs to “feel more included as they would be able to play with their peers in this type of water feature better than a wading pool.”

Bonk was writing to the county task force charged with reviewing spending proposals for the county’s $185 million allocation of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. Bonk recently explained to the task force that the plan is to seek funding for a splash pad at Underwood Park in 2023 and funding for a similar aquatic feature at Grant Park in 2024.

The funding for the splash pad was part of a package of requests that included new benches, fencing and an ADA ramp for the Wil-O-Way facilities. The county’s ARPA Task Force did not make a recommendation on the projects, yet, for procedural reasons related to review of the proposal by another “subgroup” of the task force.

The wading pool at the Underwood facility is currently only utilized during the six-week Wil-O-Way summer camp, and for a few private rentals, Bonk said in his letter. “If a Splash Pad were to be installed, we could set up timers for specific hours for the pool to be used, and allow private party rentals, and the public to utilize this water feature on an on-demand basis,” he wrote.

Splash pads also come with far less maintenance and staff requirements than a wading pool. “The nice thing about Splash Pads is the water does not need to be recirculated, and the water can be used on demand when needed,” Bonk said. “This means we would not need a pool attendant to check the water, add chemicals, and have all the maintenance responsibilities.”

James Tarantino, deputy director for the parks department, said if funding is secured in 2023, the new splash pad could be designed and constructed before the end of 2024.