Shorty Combs Park gets upgrades

AIRWAY HEIGHTS – Kids in Airway Heights have a new playground to explore

in Shorty Combs Park. The upgrade is part of the Airway Heights Parks and Recreation plan to improve to city park facilities.

Parks and Recreation Director J.C. Kennedy said the department ordered the metal playground in late 2021 from Buell Recreation at a cost of $77,145, which includes new fall protective material to protect children from injuries.

He said plans for the revitalization of the park began in 2020 after citizens voiced concerns about park conditions, including complaints of vandalism and drug use in the park's restroom facility. The old restroom building has since been removed. Other planned improvements include updates to the irrigation system, re-seeding of the grass area and replacement of old picnic tables and benches.

The work on Shorty Combs Park is part of a larger campaign to improve parks and recreation facilities around Airway Heights, including upgrades to the grass area at Landreth Park and additions of dugouts and new fencing to the recreation complex baseball field. The latter project was completed with the help of a grant from the Spokane Parks Foundation, while funding for the other improvements was drawn from the city's parks reserve fund.