Birch Grove Park

It’s trippy to be back in this neighborhood. My family moved here in 1979 and the house that I grew up in is still in the family. When I drive around town, I feel like I’ve become some sort of Newark historian. «Oh, that Asian supermarket? That used to be Service Merchandise.» «See all these business parks? When I was a kid, these were all fields and marshes.»
One thing that hasn’t changed a whole lot is Birch Grove Park. Just one block from my childhood home, I spent countless hours at this park in the 80’s. I played on the monkey bars and got into tanbark throwing wars with neighborhood kids. So many great memories and still one of the best things about living in this very blue collar, very Newarkish neighborhood.
Where once stood a play structure that looked like an old river boat now sits a new-​fangled playground complete with artificial rock walls with caves. Great to see that swing sets are still a facet of of the average playground. There’s some kind of water feature that kids can play in, but it’s been shut down, either due to drought or budget issues.
There’s so much open space here. If you want to throw a frisbee around, have your team’s soccer practice, or throw a big ol’ BBQ and invite all of your friends, this place can accommodate you. There’s a great baseball diamond and a basketball court. There are also lots of picnic tables and grills if you don’t want to bring your own Smokey Joe.
On a recent walk through the neighborhood, my wife and I spotted two cooper’s hawks in the trees in this park. They were both doing their little hawk screech and when we got too close, one of the hawks swooped down at my wife! Wild America in your local neighborhood park. (Hawks and other birds of prey not guaranteed on your visit)
Not a park worth going out of your way to visit by any means. If you live in the area, want to throw some meat on the grill and string a piñata up on one of the many trees, this is an ideal spot.

This is a nice park! I was pleasantly surprised…
The play structure is the perfect size for toddlers, but it’s laid out big enough to entertain older kids also. There’s plenty of room for kids to run around while avoiding collisions.
There are wide, open spaces of green grass and plenty of picnic tables spread around the entire park. There’s a basketball court and a baseball field also. The bathrooms are also surprisingly very clean!
It’s definitely not an attraction park, not somewhere you bring out-​of-​towners to, but it’s a good park for locals.
Some cons…
There aren’t any benches near the big play structure so you pretty much have to sit on the concrete or man-​made rocks, which is really uncomfortable. I end up just following my kid around (and even onto the play structure… there’s plenty of space).
Tan bark… eek! I noticed tan bark is popular with Newark parks. I think it’s time to upgrade to the squishy turf ground…
Sand pit… I’m not a fan of sand in general unless there’s a beach involved.
Water play area looks sad. The sign says it’s only open on weekends, but I’m guessing it doesn’t run during the winter time.
Parking lot is oddly away from everything. You’re better off parking on the street.

We were looking for a park near by with a water feature. I looked on line and found Birch grove park and I thought it had pictures of a water feature but we didn’t see anything when driving by or it’s not going because of the drought conditions.
Either way the kids were disappointed!
The park didn’t look that great so we went back to Newark community park instead.

Hidden community park in a great neighborhood. I wouldn’t mind having a picnic with friends and family here either.
+ spacious, lots of open space.
+ two play structures for children.
+ plenty of picnic tables scattered throughout the park.
+ has a basketball court, though with broken chains.
+ plenty of parking in the vicinity.
No complaints.