Westfield planning $6.8M, 20-acre expansion of Simon Moon Park, adding lake and nature preserve

Simon Moon Park at 3044 E. 171st St. in Westfield. (Image courtesy of Google)

A $6.8 million expansion project at Simon Moon Park in Westfield is expected to bring educational and recreational upgrades to the park that will include transforming two former wastewater lagoons into a recreational lake.

The city announced Tuesday that the first phase of construction is scheduled to begin in April. The park at 3044 E. 171st St. will be expanded from 5.8 acres to 25.3 acres when the two-phase construction project is complete.

First-phase upgrades to the park will include a parking lot expansion, fishing piers, boardwalks, a bridge and a reengineered sledding hill. Plans for the second phase include a new playground, an outdoor education classroom and an additional shelter. A timeline for the second phase has not been determined.

The north side of the park will be recast as a nature preserve and include a connection to the Midland Trace Trail, Westfield Director of Communications Kayla Arnold said.

Today, the park features restrooms, a shelter house, a playground and a sledding hill.

“We are thrilled to expand Simon Moon Park and provide our community with even more opportunities for outdoor recreation and social engagement,” Westfield Mayor Scott Willis said in written remarks. “This project is a testament to our commitment to creating vibrant and inclusive spaces that foster a sense of community and well-being.”

Chicago-based general contractor Norcon Inc., which has offices in Indianapolis, received the winning bid for the project. The company’s $6.8 million bid fell below the $8.2 million engineering estimate, according to a news release.

Arnold said the city has long-term plans to eventually connect Simon Moon Park with an adjacent 25-acre parcel the city purchased in January 2023 for $710,000. The 25-acre property was owned by Richard Newby, a farmer and lifelong Westfield resident who died in 2021.

The Simon Moon Park expansion project will be funded by park impact fees that residential developers pay the city when they build in Westfield, the city said. Until July 7, that fee is $3,417 per residential unit built. Beginning July 8, park impact fees will increase to $3,485.34 per unit.

Built in the mid-1970s as part of the wastewater treatment plant’s facilities, Simon Moon Park’s pair of nine-acre wastewater lagoons on East 171st Street, west of Futch Way, were taken offline in 2017.

The city worked to dredge hazardous materials from the lagoons—as well as the soil beneath them—to get a clean stamp of approval from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

In January, members of the Westfield City Council voted 7-0 to establish a new parks and recreation department and board. The ordinance made Westfield Parks & Recreation a standalone department and creates a five-person board that will seek state and federal funding to build parks and trails.