A pair of young mothers clung to the shade of a tree as they watched their children, who had just met, play together on the swings and multiple other playground structures nearby. It was already a hot day — ticking up into the mid-80s and rising — even at the early hour of 10:00 a.m.

Nearby, a pair of friends were braving the elements during a spirited bout of pickleball on a sun-soaked blue court. Behind them, a father and son practiced corner kicks on a full-sized futsal court. Leashed dogs smiled with panting tongues hanging out as they walked around the perimeter of the sizable fields.

These were just a few of the scenes observed only within the first couple hours during the unofficial soft opening of the new and oh-so-improved Kent Heights Recreational Facility on Clyde Avenue, located in the heart of the city right under the watchful gaze of the prominent EP water tower.

Originally breaking ground back in mid-April of 2024, the Kent Heights project has been more than a year in the making, but clearly one worth the wait if you ask Mayor Bob DaSilva.

“I am excited about this project. Over the weekend I stopped by early in the morning on Saturday, 8 a.m. You think people are going to be home. I couldn’t believe the number of families with young children utilizing the park,” he said in a recent interview. “It just brings me great joy to see people enjoying this wonderful investment in our community.”

And an investment it was. The total revamping of the park required creative financing, assisted by a $400,000 grant from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM), $200,000 from the city’s capital budget, and a $1.33 million allotment of the city’s American Rescue Plan Acta (ARPA) moneys received during the pandemic.

But, if you’re one to believe that municipal money spent on municipal resources for residents is money well spent, you should come check out the park for yourself.

For that price, East Providence residents and all who visit can now enjoy an expansive, ADA-compliant playground with tons of play structures, three pickleball courts, two tennis courts, a revamped basketball court, a full-size futsal court (to DaSilva’s knowledge, the only full-size futsal court in Rhode Island), solar-powered composting toilets, a resurfaced parking lot with solar-powered lighting, new walkways, new tables and benches, bike racks, and 141 new tree plantings throughout the large complex. Even our furry friends were considered, with a new dog park occupying a sizable chunk of land at the facility.

With all that in mind, DaSilva added that one of the most important improvements to the site is also one that you likely won’t ever see or even realize.

“The amount of stormwater management that went into it,” he said. “You can see all the different swales that we put in. That’s to collect any rainwater and carry it away from the fields. Back in the day, that didn’t exist. This is a project that not only brings new amenities to the kids, with a playground that is fully accessible, but it was also about the amount of drainage work we did.”

DaSilva said the flooding issues that plagued the former playing fields at the park would be solved by the infrastructural improvements, and that the added park amenities provide something for every age group to enjoy.

“I know that back in the day, when I used to come to this park before any improvements had been made, how disappointing it was sometimes because it was always flooded, the fields were uneven. You had to fight for a piece of level grass,” he said. “So seeing it now, with all the different amenities that really reaches people of all different ages, people there with young kids, older folks enjoying pickle ball and tennis, people playing basketball and now futsal, it’s incredible.”

The park was constructed by contractor Johnson Landscaping, Inc. with landscape architecture work performed by Kevin M. Alverson, and in-kind work performed by the city’s parks and highway departments.

The city will host an official grand opening celebration for the new park on Saturday, Aug. 9 at 1:00 p.m. All are invited.