Vilas Park Improvements

A temporary fence is installed between the grassy area and the parking lot driveway, near the Zoo parking lot entrance at Drake and Randall streets. The fencing is to prevent cars from parking on the grass as we prepare for a long-term landscaping project.

The long-term plan is to create a beautiful and sustainable native planting bed with trees, shrubs, and ground cover. Installation will be done in stages beginning in the fall of 2024 and continuing in 2025. The temporary fence will remain in place until the plants are well-established and large enough to naturally discourage parking on the grass. 

The tennis courts in Vilas Park are closed.

• Due to significant cracks and damage, the City's Risk Manager has deemed the Vilas Park tennis courts as unsafe.
• The condition of the courts has deteriorated to the point beyond repair and must be replaced. Budget allocations for replacement are several years away.
• The courts will be demolished after the appropriate archeological study is completed and permits are issued. 

The Parks Division, in partnership with the Madison Parks Foundation, will be installing an accessible beach mat at Vilas Park Beach in 2024. A concrete sidewalk was installed in September 2023 to provide access to the beach mat from Vilas Park Drive. The beach mat is planned to be installed in the spring of 2024.

A beach mat allows access to the beach and the water for people with limited mobility or in wheelchairs. The Parks Division installed a beach mat at Bernie's Beach in 2021 which has been well received. A photo of the installation is included at the bottom of this page.

Project Plan

Earlier in 2022, the City of Madison Parks Division began efforts for improvements to the western playground at Vilas Park, otherwise known as the “cheese” playground. As part of the adopted 2021 master plan for Vilas Park, this playground is intended to change to a nature-based play area instead of typical post and platform playground equipment. In January 2023, the project was paused and the scheduled public input meeting was canceled. We intend to revisit the project in the future.