If you grew up in Harrisonburg, chances are you have a memory tucked somewhere inside Kids Castle. Maybe it was a birthday party at the picnic shelters, a game of tag across the wooden ramparts, or just a Saturday morning when the castle at Purcell Park felt like the biggest place in the world.
After more than a year of construction and more than $3 million in upgrades, the castle is back. On Tuesday, September 1st, the City of Harrisonburg cut the ribbon on the newly rebuilt Kids Castle playground, and families from across the Shenandoah Valley showed up to storm the gates.
Opening Day at the New Castle
The scene at the grand opening said it all. After brief remarks from city officials, kids poured across the wooden bridges and through a timber arch built to resemble a medieval castle gate. Toddlers found gentle slides built into the hillside near the entrance. Bigger kids made straight for the ziplines and the wooden spire that now towers over that corner of the park. Even though it was a school day, families kept arriving all morning.
Mayor Deanna Reed, who grew up in Harrisonburg playing on the original Kids Castle, summed it up for the Daily News-Record: "We thought we had something, because we had a big old airplane sitting out there. When I walked through the entrance, it blew my mind, and it's going to blow all yours, too."
Parents were just as impressed. "I told the kids, I think it's the nicest park I've ever been to," one Mt. Crawford mom told the paper. Several noted a practical upgrade, too: the new layout has far better sightlines than the old castle's maze of towers, so keeping an eye on your crew is a whole lot easier.
A Landmark Since 1990
The original Kids Castle was built in 1990 by community volunteers, and for 35 years it was one of the Friendly City's most beloved gathering spots. But decades of weather, plus Purcell Park's well-known flooding, took their toll on the old wooden structure.
The path to the new castle actually started years ago. Community input gathered during the Purcell Park Master Plan process in 2019 and 2020 laid the groundwork before COVID-19 put the project on hold. When it picked back up, the city leaned all the way in on local voices: more than 1,000 survey responses and drawings from Harrisonburg schoolchildren shaped the design, which the city unveiled at a public meeting in October 2024.
The old castle closed on May 12, 2025, and construction began that month, led by local builder Harman Construction alongside Harrisonburg Parks and Recreation. The project was funded as one of six parks projects selected by City Council for American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars, a slate that also included the splashpad at Ralph Sampson Park and the new Westover Skatepark.
"Kids Castle has always been a one-of-a-kind playground, so we wanted to make sure this new playground keeps that spirit alive," Parks and Recreation Director Brian Mancini said when the designs debuted.
What's New at the Castle
The reimagined Kids Castle keeps the classic wooden castle feel (drawbridge-style entrance included) while adding a whole new level of play:
- A 37-foot giant slide (already the crowd favorite, according to the eight-year-olds we trust on these matters)
- A castle tower with a nearly 25-foot spiral slide
- Ziplines, swings, and climbing nets
- Elevated wooden boardwalks and walkways connecting multiple levels across the hillside
- A tricycle track for the youngest riders
- Dedicated play spaces for children as young as 6 months
- Rubberized surfacing underfoot, with an asphalt path ringing the playground
The build itself is made to last. The structure uses Robinia wood, a hardwood naturally resistant to rot and insects, and portions of the site were raised, with integrated drainage added, to address the flooding that plagued the original castle. Beneath it all sits a substantial caged footing system designed for decades of recess.
Best of all, the new playground was designed for everyone. Mancini says the new Kids Castle is about 80% accessible for every type of disability, which he credits partly to studying the best playgrounds around: "The good thing about building the newest playground in Virginia is that you're able to take the best of what everybody else has."
More Than a Playground
Kids Castle is the crown jewel, but Purcell Park itself is one of Harrisonburg's best outdoor spaces: 67 acres off Monument Avenue with ball fields, tennis and pickleball courts, picnic shelters, a 1.5-mile walking loop, and a stretch of the Bluestone Trail winding through it. A second entrance sits at Miller Circle off South Main Street.
City leaders are hoping the new castle makes the whole park more of a destination. "When people get used to coming here, they'll be able to have picnics, and people-watch, and all that sort of thing," Mancini told the Daily News-Record. "It would be pretty hard to complain about what we've got here."
If opening day was any indication, the plan is working.
Why It Matters (Our Two Cents)
At Kline May Realty, we talk a lot about what makes a house a home. Just as often, it's what's around the house that counts. Harrisonburg's continued investment in its parks, from Kids Castle to the Ralph Sampson splashpad to the rebuilt Westover Skatepark, is exactly the kind of thing that keeps this area such a draw for families. A community that rebuilds its castle, with its kids helping draw the blueprints, is a community worth calling home.
If you're exploring neighborhoods near Purcell Park or anywhere in the Valley, the agents at Kline May Realty know these streets, trails, and playgrounds firsthand. Stop by and see us. Or better yet, meet us at the top of the 37-foot slide.
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