Celebration Park, Federal Way facts for kids

Celebration Park is the biggest and most popular park in Federal Way, Washington. It covers 83.5 acres, which is about the size of 63 football fields!

This park has lots of fun things to do. You can find a cool play structure for kids. There are also four baseball fields and four soccer fields, all with lights for evening games. Many trails and pathways connect to the BPA Trail, perfect for walking or biking. The park also has a community center. You can find it at 1095 S. 324th Street.

Park History

From Airstrip to Park

Before it was a park, this land was an airstrip. An airstrip is like a small airport for planes to take off and land. It was called the Evergreen commercial airstrip. Construction on this airstrip started in 1948.

A group of 60 people owned the airstrip. They were part of a flying club in Federal Way. Many of them worked for Boeing, a famous airplane company. The flying club started in 1946. People said the airstrip was quite bumpy. It was next to a junkyard. The runway was just a rough dirt path cut through tall fir trees. Sometimes, planes even got dents from the rough ground!

How the Airstrip Was Used

The airstrip was used for different things. During the Seattle World Fair, it helped visitors. A special service offered scenic plane tours of the Pacific Northwest. Police planes also used it to patrol highways around Federal Way. It was even an emergency landing spot. If commercial flights from Sea-Tac had trouble, they could land there. The airstrip was used until 1979.

Creating a Community Park

In 1988, people started talking about turning the area into a park. Some wanted to build an office park there instead. An office park is a group of buildings for businesses. But this land was the only large open space left in Federal Way. So, the City of Federal Way bought the land in December 1990.

The name "Celebration Park" was chosen in 1992. Local residents entered a contest to name the new park. There were 75 ideas submitted!

In September 2006, Celebration Park hosted a big event. It was the Senior Softball World Championships. This shows how important the park is for sports and community events.