Grantee Spotlight: Mt. Crested Butte

Ted Scheske Playground upgraded for first time in 40 years

Children clambered across a new jungle gym, swings, monkey bars and other creative structures to celebrate the June 9 grand reopening of the Mt. Crested Butte Ted Scheske Playground.

As the only public park in Mt. Crested Butte, the space serves as a central gathering spot for the town’s roughly 900 full-time residents, visiting families, local kids and bikers looking for a resting spot. 

The upgrades are the first in more than forty years and very needed. As the infrastructure degraded, various elements were stripped away to protect users.  A once robust play area slimmed down.  

“Now we’re just very excited that it’s all new and we can start fresh,” said Addison Ives, Mt. Crested Butte Parks Department Supervisor.

The old playground was made entirely of metal, even the southwestern facing slide. Metal heats up efficiently at any elevation, catching sun 9,000 ft. above sea level only amplifies the scorch.

“It really absorbed all that heat,” Ives said. “Tended to get quite hot in the summer.”

The playground upgrade resolved those problems while adding more variety. Kids can now climb a small rock feature, dangle from monkey bars and speed down two separate slides (one is even a double, perfect for racing).

Revamped swings welcome all sorts of adventurers, too. Right next to standard bucket and saddle swings sits an ADA-compliant platform swing designed for easy transfer. That detail matters: the playground welcomes visitors of all abilities.

Accessibility upgrades extend beyond the equipment. Previously, the only way to the playground was a set of stairs from the parking lot—a difficult route for strollers and wheelchairs. Now a gently sloped hardpack path serves as an alternative to the stairs.