Willow Bend Park and Natural Area
What does it look like when access for all becomes the foundation of a park—not an added feature?
A New Standard for Inclusive Play and Connection
Willow Bend Park + Natural Area is a 79-acre community destination designed around a simple but powerful idea: everyone belongs. As Loveland’s first fully inclusive, universally accessible regional park, the project redefines what it means to create meaningful experiences for people of all ages and abilities.
Developed in close collaboration with local residents and disability advocates, the park moves beyond minimum accessibility standards to support a full spectrum of physical, sensory, social, and cognitive experiences. Playgrounds, multi-use fields, sport courts, and shaded gathering areas are intentionally designed to encourage participation side by side—ensuring that access is not separate, but shared.
The park is equally rooted in its natural context. Adjacent open space provides opportunities for environmental education, nature-based play, and passive recreation, while connecting seamlessly to the regional trail system and existing amenities like the fishing pier. Together, these elements create a layered experience where recreation, ecology, and community intersect.
From early visioning through completion, Dig Studio led a process centered on listening, learning, and translating community voices into built form. The result is more than a park—it is a welcoming, connected landscape that reflects Loveland’s values and sets a new benchmark for inclusive public space in Northern Colorado.
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Location
Loveland, CO
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Client
City of Loveland Parks and Recreation
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Awards
2024 APA Colorado - Honor Award Advancing Diversity and Social Change
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Collaborators
Muller Engineering
Ackerman Engineering
Hydrosystems*KDI
Great Ecology
Abundant Playscapes
ECI Site Construction -
Photography
Andrew Allomong
GameTime -
Size
79 acres
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Region
Southwest
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Project Type
Park
Shaped for inclusion: Sculpted landforms and looping paths create a continuous play experience where people of all abilities move, explore, and connect together.
Movement made intuitive: Wide, gently curving paths and shaded pauses support independence, comfort, and confidence for visitors navigating the park in different ways.
An inclusive play landscape brings all ages and abilities together, with shaded gathering spaces, varied play features, and open circulation designed for shared movement, connection, and community.
Shared adventure: Elevated play structures offer varied routes and challenges, allowing children of all abilities to engage side by side.
Topography as play: Hills become destinations—supporting climbing, rolling, and accessible routes that bring everyone to the same moments of joy.
Play for all: Inclusive swings create opportunities for shared experiences between caregivers, friends, and children of all abilities.
A young visitor confidently crosses an elevated bridge, illustrating how accessible design creates moments of independence, exploration, and joy for users of all ages and abilities.
