City shows plans for McKennan Park wading pool; neighbors weigh in on ice

The replacement wading pool at McKennan Park is moving forward, while future improvements could include a refrigerated ice rink.

The aging wading pool will be replaced by one that’s about the same size but a different shape, with zero-depth entry, “some minor spray features to get kids engaged, and we’re going to have an updated restroom building and the pool house, where we have maintenance and can have an operations spot for our guys,” park development specialist Carter Roberts said.

“We’re going to expand the pool deck by quite a bit, add new shading. That’s what we heard in the community engagement process. There will be some landscaping with a little turf adjacent like you see at Terrace Park or Laurel Oak, not quite that size but generally just trying to blend with McKennan Park and the existing features of the park.”

Options shown include a slide for young children and one for families.

The goal is to start construction on the wading pool after the coming swim season, which will put it out of commission for the 2025 season.

The concept was presented at a neighborhood meeting this week.

“Overall, the reaction was positive to the aquatics facility,” said David Locke, a landscape architect with Stockwell Engineers, which is designing the project.

“People liked the added aquatic amenities and play value, more deck space and more shade opportunities. They also liked the large wide slide into the deeper water at the south end of the pool. The proposed pool design is larger than the existing pool and also incorporates zero-depth entry to help with elderly, ADA accessibility and shallow water for the littler children.  Everyone loved the incorporation of the zero-depth entry and some of the interactive spray features in that area.”

The pool construction and new bathhouse will impact the existing unrefrigerated ice rink, though, which generated more neighborhood conversation.

“The city has had great difficulty in maintaining unrefrigerated ice rinks in recent years and providing a quality ice experience that people expect,” Locke said. “For example, this year with the warm temperatures, it will most likely be after the first of the year before the rinks can be flooded, and then if we get some warm days in March, this can really diminish the usability and length of season for the ice rinks.”

While nothing is budgeted, the concept at McKennan Park is to transition to a smaller refrigerated rink.

“A refrigerated rink will provide a much better-quality ice product and will incorporate lighting and a fire feature, similar but in a smaller scale than what will be built at Jacobson Plaza in Falls Park,” Locke said.

The city is working with the Parks Foundation to reach out to donors for potential interest, he said. In the meantime, the city’s plan would be to maintain an unrefrigerated ice rink at McKennan Park, though smaller than what currently exists.

For now, there will be no changes to the ice rink, and it will operate this year and potentially next season as it always has, pending weather.

Nothing has been finalized, though, and there will be additional opportunities for input. Some neighbors, for instance, pointed out that the current rink is used for neighborhood hockey games, which a smaller rink wouldn’t be able to accommodate.

“We want to go back out to the community before we start detailed design,” Roberts said. “We’ll see what they like and don’t like and tweak it again before we finalize.”

The revised master plan is tentatively scheduled to be considered by the Sioux Falls Parks & Recreation Board in the first part of next year.