Williams Park is a popular destination for families for good reason. The largest park in Brownsburg covers 77 acres and boasts many sought-after amenities. Entertain the your kids all day with 2 playgrounds, a splash pad, shelters, trails, basketball courts, a veterans’ memorial, 2 large restroom facilities, and expansive grass space. Brownsburg also hosts many community events here. If you haven’t already, this is a park worth checking out!
Take to the Trails
Williams Park has 2 trails. The Maple Ridge Trail (.79 mile) is a wooded, crushed stone path. Near this trail, you’ll find the Outdoor Classroom which offers two pollinator gardens, a raised herb garden, nature play equipment, and a handmade natural stage. The Williams Park Loop (.78 mile) is a paved trail that encircles the park from the entry circle to the Watermill Splash Pad. Brownsburg hosts its community Halloween event, Trail or Treat, here on the Williams Park Loop.
Revitalization of Blast Off Playground
Hundreds of volunteers came together in 2000 to build the original Blast Off Playground. Favorite features of this wooden playground included towers, tunnels, ramps, swings, monkey bars, slides, and more. The playground was beloved by the community for many years but was showing its age due to weather and aging over the last 2 decades.
With the help of crowdfunding and multiple donors, the town of Brownsburg reached its goal from the community and a matching grant from the #CreatingPlaces program to update the Blast Off playground portion of Williams Park. Phase 1 was completed in October 2021 over a five-day period. Volunteers updated play features, replaced wooden beams and posts with recycled plastic composite, re-mulched, and repaired hardware.
Phase 2 was completed in July 2022 and included replacing railings and decking, installing new play features, and painting. As of fall 2022, there are still a few projects that will need to be done to fully complete the renovation. These include replacing the rubber playground surfacing and some painting.
Playground Features Your Kids Will Love
Just visiting the park now, you can see the rejuvenation of the playground through the vibrancy of these new features and structures. The recently added features include a hilly bridge to climb across, a spinning feature that seats 4, a tandem parent-and-toddler swing, and new posts to scale to get to the climbing structure. There is also a new “stage” for children. Although the playground is not completely wheelchair accessible, there is a ramp entrance and a pathway to a swing that allows for easy transfer from a wheelchair.
By the entrance of the playground, you’ll still find a shaded pavilion with picnic tables and benches, and a library book box, if you want to enjoy a story at the park. There is also a large open field next to the Blast Off Playground. You can often catch events and movies in the park here. This site is also the space for the annual Bow Wow Bash event.
Spend a Warm Day at The Watermill Splash Pad
The Watermill Splash Pad is the other popular feature of Williams Park which makes it a summer destination for families. The Watermill is open from 10 am to 7 pm seasonally beginning in May until the end of summer in mid to late September. It is located at the back of the park. The splash pad is wheelchair accessible with zero depth entry. An outdoor shower feature is available for guests to use to rinse off before or after playtime.
The Watermill may just be the best spray park in Hendricks County. There is no other splash pad in the area like it, with more than 2,500 square feet of interactive aquatic play features. Kids love the Superwave that churns 32 gallons of water per minute, water sprayers, and fountain features that spray children with misting, flowing, jetting, and dumping water.
A nature-themed playground next to the splash pad has rocks and wood logs to climb on, a dragonfly seesaw, a wood tunnel to crawl through, and a rope structure to climb. Nearby is a parent-and-child expression swing. Just be cautious if your child is going back and forth between the playground and the splash pad without shoes. They may find the wood chips hurt their feet. Also, watch out for slick surfaces left by kids in wet swimsuits on the play structures.
Amenities for Comfort and Convenience
The playground’s shady overhang offers a cool place to escape the summer sun while taking a break from play. There are benches and picnic tables where you can sit and relax and there is parking in front of the splash pad. Some days throughout the summer, Kona Ice is stationed nearby selling shaved ice treats.
Williams Park offers six shelters with picnic tables perfect for hosting parties and get-togethers. Reserve a shelter online or by calling (317) 858-4172. Reservations are from the time the park opens until close at dusk.
Visit the Veteran’s Memorial
To honor all men and women who have served in the United States Military, Williams Park has a Veterans Memorial. A landscaped garden and a memorial pathway of brick pavers surround this granite monument. A veteran’s name, branch of the military, and dates of service are inscribed on each brick in the path. You can purchase a brick by filling out an order form and emailing it to Brownsburg Parks.
Williams Park is a great place to take your family. With the new renovation of the Blast Off Playground, this park can bring more decades of memories to the west side of Indy.
Address
940 Locust Lane
Brownsburg
IN
46112
Visit Williams Park & Blast Off Playground