Hooray for Swings! Join us October 17

Our efforts have been picked up by The Benicia Bridge blog. Read it here.

The Playground of Dreams is a treasured landmark in Benicia City Park, site of countless childhood memories and a draw for thousands of visitors from out of town. Sadly, the volunteer-built playground was being somewhat neglected for several years before 2023. Numerous pieces of equipment were removed for safety reasons, including both swing sets.

The volunteer group Benicia Friends of the Playground (BFP) is very excited about the support and funding opportunities for the Playground of Dreams, but even more so about the progress on the site in 2026, including our upcoming workday Oct. 17, 2026.

The swings are back! A city contractor finally installed the Playdale tot swings paid for by Benicia families through BFP. Now we need swings for people who are past toddling.

Talks continue between BFP and the city, which has no parks department or parks commission for such issues anymore. The city will help dedicate its new swingset at our workday Saturday the 17th with a cake as well as the usual tools and materials.

The workday is an opportunity for Benicians to help maintain a city landmark that our kids actually care about, but also, BFP board members will be there seeking input about the site’s future. It is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and you can pretty much choose what task you do there, so we hope to see you then.

The Playground of Dreams was built by volunteers of all ages in five days of 1992. It was maintained the first several years by Benicia Friends of the Playground volunteers, but sanding and sealing a wooden playground takes scores of work hours, and the city stopped doing it years ago.

Benicia Friends of the Playground reformed in 2023 to preserve and protect the play structure, once again as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. With help from other Benicia community groups and wood replacement by the city, volunteer work days the last two years have improved the structure's viability and sturdiness substantially.

The next step in restoring Benicia's largest volunteer-built structure is buying replacement swing sets and more accessible ground cover, which due to the city's budget shortfall will require help from the community once again. Kits to build swing sets this size range from $2,000 to $14,000.

Please click the Donate button here to give what you can to Bring Back the Swings to City Park. Donations can also be mailed to Benicia Friends of the Playground, 365 Military East, Benicia, CA 94510.

You can email us at contact@saveourplayground.org if you have questions or would like to join our all-volunteer campaign. Lets do it for the kids!