What are the opening hours?

Monday 7:30am - 5pm Tuesday 7:30am - 5pm Wednesday 7:30am - 5pm Thursday 7:30am - 5pm Friday 8am - 12pm

Brookings Park and Recreation

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Brookings Park and Recreation

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The official Brookings (SD) Parks Recreation and Forestry page. Follow for updates.

10/22/2026

🌱 ☀️ Community Gardens Cleanup Reminder!

Enjoy this week’s warm, sunny weather while you can! With colder, wet weather in the forecast for next week, now is the perfect time to get your garden plots cleaned up before the weather turns. 😎

📅🍂 Gardeners, please remove all items and debris from your plots by Saturday, October 31, so our crews can prepare the gardens for fall cleanup and plowing.

🧹 What needs to go? Please remove large plants, pumpkins, squash, watermelon, sunflowers, hoses, fencing, equipment, and other items. Garden debris can be placed in the compost pile.
🌼 Perennial plots are exempt from this requirement. Fencing, pots, and other items may remain, but plots must still be cleaned up and w**ds removed.
⚠️ Plots not cleared by October 31 will be subject to a $50 service fee and loss of renewal privileges.
💧 Water was scheduled to be shut off October 15.

Thank you for helping keep our community gardens clean and ready for the season ahead. 🌻

10/19/2026

Our Parks crew is spraying herbicide for w**d control on the hill area of the Dakota Nature Park today. We ask that people and pets stay off the grass until it is dry. Signs are posted.

10/15/2026

Loving the fall colors? Imagine adding a little more color to your own yard while also helping Brookings grow a healthier, more sustainable urban forest. 🍂 🌳

Fall is a great time to plant a tree, and through the Brookings Urban Forest Initiative, you can receive reimbursement for approved tree purchases.

The best news? There’s still funding available!

Here’s how much you could get back:
• Up to $100 per approved tree.
• An additional $25 for trees planted in your front yard.
• $50 for treatment of an ash or elm tree

Want to learn more? Find the list of approved trees and full program details at https://ow.ly/4B0V50ZYfHA

Let’s keep our urban forest growing.

10/13/2026

News Release: The Brookings Sustainability Council invites the public to an end-of-season open house at the Brookings Community Food Forest on Sunday, Oct. 18, from 4 to 6 p.m.

Read full news release at https://ow.ly/qazX50ZXlK4

The open house will provide an opportunity for people to explore the food forest, learn about its development over the past two years, and hear about plans for its future. A ribbon cutting for the food forest took place in June.

“The Brookings Community Food Forest is a space where people can gather, enjoy nature, harvest produce, participate in volunteer days and educational workshops, and grow community,” said Robin Buterbaugh, a member of the Brookings Sustainability Council.

The Brookings Community Food Forest is a collaborative project between the city’s Sustainability Council and Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department.

The food forest is located near the Douglas Chittick Community Gardens at the northeast corner of the Medary Avenue and U.S. Highway 14 Bypass intersection. To access the food forest, guests should enter from the Highway 14 Bypass to the south of the Community Gardens.

10/13/2026

We’re buzzing with excitement! Our inaugural Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz was a huge success! 🐝🌿

🫶🏼 Thanks to our awesome community, we spent September discovering and documenting the incredible biodiversity found in our local parks. And the results are worth celebrating!

📊 Here’s what we accomplished together:
🔎 1,367 observations recorded
🌻 299 species documented
👀 126 identifiers participating

Every observation made a difference! From fluttering butterflies and busy bees to beautiful native plants, your contributions helped us take a closer look at the amazing wildlife and plant life that call our community home. 💚

The Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department – along with the Sustainability Council – extend their heartfelt appreciation to everyone who got outside, explored our parks and shared their pollinator, plant and wildlife sightings. As a Bee City USA affiliate, we’re happy to see our community come together to support pollinators. 🐝

📸 Let’s take a look at some of our top sightings! All photos are from the Parks for Pollinators 2026: Brookings Parks, Recreation & Forestry project on iNaturalist.

🦋 Top Pollinator Observations:
• Monarch Butterfly – 28
• Painted Lady Butterfly – 19
• Common Eastern Bumble Bee – 16
• Asian Lady Beetle – 15
• Cabbage White Butterfly – 13
• Chickw**d Geometer Moth – 6
• Margined Calligrapher Fly – 5
• White-lined Sphinx Moth – 4

🌿 Top Native Plant Observations:
• Heath Aster – 23
• New England Aster – 22
• Big Bluestem – 19
• Little Bluestem – 19
• Sideoats Grama – 18
• Common Milkw**d – 17
• Narrow-leaved Cattail – 14
• False Sunflower – 12

📸 Wondering what the letters on the photos mean? 🌱 N = Native to our region. 🌿 IN = Introduced to our region. 📷 CC = Creative Commons photo copyright license.

🌳 The adventure doesn’t have to end here! There’s no better time than now to visit one of our parks to take a closer look at the natural wonders all around us. You never know what you might discover!

The Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz is a program of the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).

09/26/2026

Don't let the cloud cover keep you from coming to the free Parks for Pollinator BioBlitz at the Dakota Nature Park until 4 PM today! There are indoor crafts and activities for all to enjoy! Plus, you can learn about all the different pollinators in Brookings from local experts. 🐝🪴🦋

Event: Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz
📍 Dakota Nature Park, 1705 32nd St. S., Brookings
📅 Saturday, September 26, 2026
🕐 1:00 to 4:00 PM
🎟️ Free for all to attend
🥤 Small Town Soda food truck

The event is hosted by the Brookings Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department in partnership with the Sustainability Council.

The Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz is a program of the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).

09/23/2026

Join us for the Parks for Pollinator BioBlitz this Saturday, September 26, at the Dakota Nature Park from 1 to 4 PM!

Learn about all of the different pollinators in Brookings from local experts. There will be crafts and other activities for all to enjoy!

Learn more about our local biodiversity. Download the free iNaturalist app to document plants, pollinators, and other living things you find around the community. Simply snap a picture of a pollinator in the app, and the online community will help identify what you found.

Bees🐝 | Butterflies🦋 | Bats🦇 | Plants🪴 & more

Event: Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz
📍 Dakota Nature Park, 1705 32nd St. S., Brookings
📅 Saturday, September 26, 2026
🕐 1:00 to 4:00 PM
🎟️ Free for all to attend
🥤 Small Town Soda food truck

The event is hosted by the Brookings Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department in partnership with the Sustainability Council.

The Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz is a program of the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).

09/18/2026

Open skate is back for the season. A great place to make memories outing with friends and family. All skating abilities welcome.

Address

520 3rd Street, Suite 130
Brookings, SD
57006

Opening Hours

Monday	7:30am - 5pm
Tuesday	7:30am - 5pm
Wednesday	7:30am - 5pm
Thursday	7:30am - 5pm
Friday	8am - 12pm

Telephone

+16056922708

Website

https://cityofbrookings-sd.gov/204/Parks-Recreation-Forestry, https://brookingsrec.activityreg.com/clientpage_t2.wcs

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