Renovated Dinosaur Caves Park reopens with new playground equipment

A newly renovated Dinosaur Caves Park reopened in Shell Beach on Thursday morning.

Pismo Beach officials, along with dozens of community members and children, welcomed the new changes with a jubilant ribbon cutting ceremony.

“We’re just excited that we finally have this new playground equipment available to our children,” said Pismo Beach Mayor Ed Waage. “It’s so important that kids can get out to a brand new playground and just have a great time. It’s great for the parents, the grandparents and the children.”

The park was closed over the past couple of months while the park went through extensive upgrades.

“We’re really excited,” said Shell Beach resident Sharla Gaddis. “We’ve been anticipating it, watching them build it over the past few months and we’re probably going to be here every day after school.”

Among the improvements, the city installed more active playground structures that are age appropriate.

“It was kind of a park that geared itself towards younger kids and the older kids would kind of outgrow it, but now there’s slides and so many active things going on,” said Gaddis. “We’re really excited.”

According to the city, making the park a more active environment for children of all ages was a high priority.

“Dinosaur Caves Park is a gem in the community,” said City Manager Jim Lewis in a statement. “The new equipment encourages our youth to explore, play, and appreciate the beauty of the park, its surroundings, and the spirit of Pismo Beach. My children cannot wait to play on it.”

With construction completed at Dinosaur Caves Park, renovation of nearby Spyglass Park is scheduled to begin in the near future.

“It’s going to be similar to this,” said Waage. “It’s going to be an active playground and that’s what we’re trying to achieve.”

Work on the Spyglass Park will last a few weeks. The park will be closed while renovations are being made.