Brentwood Park Project Highlights Full-Circle Community Connection

The new Brentwood Park playground is more than a new place to play. For City of Greeley Parks Crew Supervisor, Fred Lindeen and Park Tech, AJ Gonzalez, the project brought back memories from their own childhoods.

Both staff members attended Brentwood Middle School and spent time at Brentwood Park growing up. Today, they help maintain the same park for the next generation of students and families. During the April 27 opening celebration of the park, Brentwood Middle School’s sixth graders used the new playground during recess. AJ Gonzalez reunited with Brentwood Middle School principal, Nicole Petersen. Petersen joked that Gonzalez was “old now,” since the last time she saw him was when he was a middle school student.

That connection made the recent playground opening especially meaningful. As students explored the new playground during recess, the staff members reflected on how the park has changed over the years and what it means to help care for a place that helped shape their childhood.

The Brentwood Park playground replacement transformed a decades-old playground into a safer, more accessible and engaging space designed with input from Brentwood Middle School students. The project highlights how neighborhood parks can connect generations and remain a lasting source of community pride.