HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Zoo Splash River and Nature Play Expansion officially opened Friday.
The zoo broke ground on the project more than a year ago.
The originally-budgeted $300,ooo for the project was not enough, so the zoo received help from T-Mobile and other community supporters.
Conklin Cars also helped by providing grant money for landscaping and Trinity high schoolers helped plant the area during a service day.
Zoo officials deemed the expansion a "fabulous area packed in a small acreage."
To continue to address the growing needs of the community, the zoo built the Nature Play expansion as a no-cost, safe and welcome place for children and families. The focal point for this project is the Splash River. The purpose of the Splash River is to give children under 10 a chance to observe, explore and investigate a naturalistic creek bed safely.
Keeping physical accessibility in mind, this feature allows children of all abilities to have a similar experience with the stream, regardless of the time of year. Through self- or social-play opportunities, the zoo hopes their experiences will support life-skills development, provide early introductions to higher-level learning, deepen connections, and build empathy for people, wildlife and the natural world.
The Nature Play expansion retrofits the former parking lot into a natural-looking splash river, inclusive-play elements, and green space. All these additions will be adjacent to the North American River Otter Exhibit that opened in the summer of 2020. This project is supported by a Land and Water Conservation Grant, T-Mobile Hometown Grant, and donations through Hutchinson Friends of the Zoo.
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