Sprinker Outdoor Improvements

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Project Update

Exciting news! 

The Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) has announced grant rankings and Sprinker scored very well!  The project scored:


  • Tied for 3rd  for Youth Athletic Fields
  • 5th for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and
  • 16th for Local Parks Category of the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program

While grant funds are subject to state supplemental budget approval in November 2020, these rankings are very promising!


Next Steps:

  • Detailed Design Phase - Now until first quarter of 2022
  • Public Update - Summer 2021
  • Construction - beginning late 2022 or early 2023, ending summer of 2023*

*Construction schedules are dependent on factors such as weather and may be extended.

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About the Project

Pierce County Parks is working to improve outdoor features at Sprinker Recreation Center.  In 2017, a Master Plan for Sprinker site improvements was created. The goal of the Master Plan was to expand the variety of uses at the park, increase capacity, enhance pedestrian connections, improve sustainability and create a safe, inviting experience for everyone. 

Using public input from fall 2019 and spring 2020, we’ve developed a preferred design for the first phase of improvements. For a closer look at the preferred design, check out these other resources:

We’re excited to build all of these planned outdoor improvements, but due to funding limitations, we won’t be able to build this project all at once. We expect Phase 1 to be constructed in 2022 and 2023. The first phase is expected to include:

  • The park entry plaza
  • A central park core
  • A community event lawn
  • Synthetic turf ballfields
  • A connection to the future Parkland Community Trail, which is another Pierce County Parks project,
  • And renovations to the parking lot

The remaining improvements, including the 4-field complex in the northwest corner, will be constructed in a future phase, once we’ve secured the required funding. 


The construction budget for the Phase 1 improvements is approximately ten million dollars. These funds are comprised of Parks Impact Fees, State Recreation Grants, Real Estate Excise Tax, and Parks Sales Tax.


Outreach Summary

From October 2019 to early 2020, we took early design ideas to the public and collected input to understand which program elements are most important to the community. Thanks to all who participated!


Here’s what we heard:

  • Participants were especially interested in the following features:
    • Walking trails
    • Open lawn areas and flexible event spaces
    • Picnic areas
    • Spray park
  • Other elements that were important to community members include:
    •  Multi-purpose synthetic turf fields
    • Parking lot improvements
    • Formal park entryway

Check out our public outreach summary for more detail or view the full set of materials (43 MB) from our October meeting.


Project Contact

Benjamin Barrett

Capital Projects Manager
(253) 798-4081 | email