Check out Paseo Vista Park

By Mandy Walton

Wednesday, May 20, 2009 | 6:13 p.m.

Paseo Vista Park is the hot spot for tots! I try to meet up with a friend every so often so that we can talk while our kids play. This time she suggested Paseo Vista Park.

It was about 10 a.m. on Friday when I arrived at the park and already the place was packed with toddlers and pre-school aged kids and their parents — probably a fun treat while older siblings are at school. I couldn’t believe how many people were there. It felt like a Saturday.

Besides having a splash pad where the kids can run through the water, this park also has two great playground areas, one of which is ADA accessible, geared toward younger kids.

The playground apparatus has a ramp throughout the entire play structure so a child in a wheelchair can also play at the top of the structure with friends. Both playgrounds are shaded by canopies.

A swing set accompanies each play structure and instead of two baby swings and two regular swings, which is standard, there are four baby swings on both sets! I was especially fond of this because lately when I take my kid to swing at a park, there are pre-adolescent potty-mouths hanging out on the “big kid” swings.

The splash pad is located in the center of the park and consists of a large open space with a rubber ground surface. Water shoots out of about a dozen places on the ground. Even though we were nearing 100 degrees, the water was freezing! However, we were cooled off for the rest of the day.

A shaded picnic area sits between both play structures and in front of the water-play area. I counted about eight or so picnic tables. It was a perfect spot to get the kids out of the sun and have a snack while still watching everything going on at the park.

There was only one thing I didn’t like about the park, and that was the park’s close proximity to the street. Many parks in Henderson are set back away from a busy street, but this one backs right up to Paseo Verde Parkway. Parents have to keep an extra close eye on their children, because there is no fence that separates the park from the street.

If you’re interested in checking out this great area for little ones, Paseo Vista Park is located on Paseo Verde Parkway, between Carnegie Street and St. Rose Parkway/Pecos Road. Have fun!