This is a rectangular greenspace in the grid of downtown Phoenixville. It's about two blocks of…read morepark space.
When I visited on a warm day in late winter, there was plenty of street parking, along the perimeter of the park (all FREE).
These are what the borough describes as the park amenities:
-All-Abilities Playground
-Small Ball Field
-Band Pavilion
-Gazebo
-Historic Monuments
They don't mention the well sized open-air theater, which is impressive. They host concerts & movie nights there in the warm months. This would be an amazing summer venue for children's theater in the day, & adult shows at night. I actually did some research & investigating for this Yelp review so I could share helpful info. I called the park office, was sent to their programming office (610-933-8801 x127 Debbie), left messages & questions everywhere, but did not learn any more than what I could see in the existing calendar online (no calls back). So a local can probably give you a better idea, but I tried.
There is an outdated playground (still newish by many standards), & an impressive newer one.
According to a proud sign, just inside the gate, the new playground at Reeves is a Biba playground. Biba is a company in Vancouver, Canada. Apparently they offer apps for interactive play. Their website is not the easiest to navigate, & info is not well presented, IMO, so I gave up after 5 minutes screwing with it.
I did not see any of the kids there using apps, however, I was interested to see moms interacting with their kids in ways I have not seen at other playgrounds. I am not sure if the moms-kids games were based on the Biba apps, or their own creativity, but it made me so happy to see the interaction.
I am normally the mom climbing all over the playstructure to make sure my very active 19-month-old doesn't get hurt or take a fall. So it was cool to see that this playground was made to allow parents easy access all over everything, at their kids' sides, & that these active moms present when I visited, were doing just that. They were teaching the kids a hide-and-seek type game, as well as a tag type game. I also saw the kids pretending they were animals, really cute. My son was too young to get involved, but he enjoyed watching the big kids at play. So if these games were the result of the Biba apps, I totally think they're awesome. If not, I wish more people would catch on to these ideas & play more with their kids. Few other playgrounds have parents this engaged. It's too common to see people lost on their phones, or trying to chat up other parents for an adult social off to the side.
As for the play equipment itself, it was really captivating & creative, with unusual ideas for the structure design, & all the moving components. For example, there is a slide of stainless steel rollers (like at the end of a warehouse conveyor belt or something). In my mom brain, as soon as I saw it, I KNEW my kid would NEED to go down that thing. Soon enough, his eyes popped & he made a beeline. So I guided him down over, & over, & over. That thing does accelerate & get insane, but he had so much fun!
Biba is following a trend of playground marketing that I find similar to the fancy grocery store experience we've watched take off over the past 10+ years. Why not dress up the grocery store & make it a destination? Honestly, some people now go on dates to grocery stores. So the new playground thing is to make it a mind & body experience; to emphasize exercise benefits, promote more types of movement (different ways to climb, centrifuge pieces to challenge balance, mock rope bridges that challenge strength & balance), & acknowledge that your kid is getting a workout each day, & a better one at a better playground. Do I buy into that? Kind of.
Biba (like many new playgrounds) also adds puzzles or sign language & Braille charts to the walls of the nooks. I'd think kids would run right past the mental didactic stuff, if I didn't witness them actually stopping to use it. Cool.
A huge plus for me was that this place was completely fenced in, & everyone paid attention to assuring the gate stayed latched. This allowed me to let my son have freedom to run within safe limits. It also deters people who don't belong at a playground from coming inside, keeps litter at bay, & eliminates the risk of dog surprises or anything like that. I probably sound paranoid, but you have to look out for EVERYTHING as a parent, & have a million scenarios running in your head to keep on top of wild kids.
A lot of places these days are vying for the "renowned destination playground" title, but of all the impressive ones I've seen (Smith in Fairmount Park, Freedom in Haverford, Smiles in Aston, Kids Dream in Glen Mills, etc.) this one at Reeves is now my favorite. It wasn't too crowded, parents there cared deeply about the outdoor play experience, the equipment was new/fun/clean/safe, my kid dug it, it was fenced in, & parking was right nearby & free. Visit!
