On August 26, 2026, the West Bloomfield Parks and Recreation Commission voted 7–0 to hire Michigan Recreational Construction. The contract covers site preparation, playground equipment, and a natural playground at Pine Lake Park, and it can't exceed $782,100. The same motion approved removing the basketball courts to make room. WB Parks has also said that, for the foreseeable future, no other park project at this scale is planned.
The commission is putting its last large park effort into a site it means to keep small. The decisions so far show that, and so does the gap between what is approved and what is still pending.
Why the east side, and why this parcel
Park Superintendent Chris Frey has worked for West Bloomfield Parks since 1999. He told Oakland County Times on September 14, 2026 that the system has long had too little park land on the east side of Orchard Lake Road. "We always knew through years of planning through the park system that we were lacking park property on the East Side of Orchard Lake Road in West Bloomfield Township," he said. The same article notes that most township parks sit north and south along the west side of that road. The West Bloomfield Trail network runs east to west across the township.
The land became available almost by accident. It used to be Pine Lake Elementary, part of the Bloomfield Hills School District, and it sat empty after the school closed in the late 2010s. Talks began in 2020, and in November 2023 WB Parks finalized a long-term lease on the property. The school district keeps the land, and the township gets a park on the side that lacked one.
The lease also limits the design. Under the agreement with Bloomfield Hills School District, the park can't have an off-leash dog area. WB Parks points dog owners to the West Bloomfield Dog Park instead.
A park designed to stay quiet
Frey has said plainly that Pine Lake isn't meant to compete with Drake Park or Marsh Lake Park, which he called large and very busy. The goal is a quieter, more intimate park for the residential area around it. He told Oakland County Times that the open-space approach came from surveys of nearby residents.
"We don't want to build on every single square inch of this property, so we're going have some space left alone as grass." — Chris Frey, West Bloomfield Parks superintendent, to Oakland County Times
That intent shows in the April 2024 master plan for the site. Its main features include:
- a 0.65-mile outer-loop multi-use path, plus informal walking paths
- a boardwalk with an educational overlook
- meadow and woodlot preserves, with stormwater management
- a large playground and a separate small play area
- four pickleball courts, two tennis courts, one full basketball court and two half courts
- an expanded ballfield and about 120 parking spaces
- two to three portable toilets
Frey said WB Parks would like a permanent restroom building with running water but isn't sure it can be funded. Some open areas will be left unmowed so they grow in as prairie-style wildflower meadow. Others will be mowed and kept clear for picnic blankets. A path through the park to the nearby woods will be kept.
The natural playground follows the same thinking. WB Parks says it will be the first of its kind in the system. Proposed features include grassy mounds, retaining walls with ground-level caves, climbing walls with tunnels, log piles, boulder mazes, slides, swings, zip lines, and shaded seating. Frey has explained why it takes longer than a standard steel playground: grass and plants have to grow in around the structures.
What the money has settled
One spending decision is firm, and that is the August playground contract. County money is moving forward but hasn't been awarded. On February 25, 2026, the Parks Commission voted 7–0 to approve a Pine Lake Park affiliation agreement with Oakland County, pending attorney review. The vote approved the agreement only. It didn't award a dollar amount.
Citizen Portal covered the February 23 presentation to the Bloomfield Hills Schools board. It reported that Oakland County Parks is proposing roughly $1.5 million for early phases, the trails and the nature-based playground. The same report said full build-out could approach $7 million over time. The master plan report available online has no itemized cost estimates. Set against that rough $7 million figure, the $782,100 playground contract is a small first piece, and the proposed county money would pay for the early phases only.
Frey has been open that the pace depends on that gap. "At the end of the day it all depends on money," he told Oakland County Times. "If we can get the contractors in and out, we'll continue to do this over the next two to three years." The project was first planned in four phases, and he hopes the budget will allow some phases to be combined.
What is still pending
According to Frey, work will start at the south end, at the back of the park, and move toward Long Lake Road. Based on what WB Parks has published, the order is:
- Construction documents and permits for the whole park, which the February 2026 update calls Phase 1.
- Hiring an engineering firm. Oakland County Times reported WB Parks hoped to have one in place by October 1, 2026.
- Installing the playground and walking path. The September–December 2026 Fall Guide estimates spring 2027.
- Trails and the upper meadow, which the February update calls Phase 2. Ballfield expansion may be included, depending on bids and timing.
Several of these steps haven't been confirmed publicly. As of this writing, the WB Parks commission page lists August 2026 as its latest posted minutes. It lists a September 23 meeting but no agenda or minutes for it. None of the records reviewed confirm that the October 1 engineering target was met. The Pine Lake Park page still says the playground is pending final engineering and Township approval. It also says construction of the playground and accessible paths is expected to start in spring, with the playground opening in fall.
Sources also disagree on how long the full build-out will take. Frey's quote gives two to three years. The park page's FAQ says improvements begin in 2026 and take about five years, phased over that time. For now, a fair reading is a playground target in 2027 and a finish date that depends on funding.
Some current information doesn't match the approvals either. The park listing still names a ball field, a playground, a basketball court, two tennis courts with pickleball lines, nature trails, and seasonal portable restrooms. The August vote approved removing the basketball courts. Whether that has happened yet hasn't been confirmed. The same page explains that two of the three old school play structures failed national safety standards and were removed, and that the one repaired structure stays open until the new playground is installed.
The other project, on a longer clock
The Connect Community Center is a bigger project with a later date. It is being built at 4640 Walnut Lake Road, on the site of the Recreation Activities Center, which was torn down in May 2026. A groundbreaking ceremony was held that July. The Fall Guide gives the date as July 15, 2026, and lists the grand opening for winter 2028.
The money behind Connect works differently. In August 2024, voters approved a 20-year, $25 million bond, and most of it goes to the community center. After the April 22 Parks Commission meeting, C&G Newspapers reported a guaranteed maximum price of $23.7 million. Commissioners also set aside $3.5 million from the fund balance as a cushion against cost increases, which won't necessarily be spent. A February 2026 Township release says the building will be just over 48,000 square feet. It will have a gymnasium, an elevated walking track, rentable multipurpose rooms, and an expanded nature center. HED is the architect and Frank Rewold & Sons is the construction manager.
The leased Connect space at 14 Mile and Farmington Road stays open until the new building opens. Then staff and programs move to Walnut Lake Road. Its own page gives different dates for that move. The FAQ mentions 2027, the timeline says winter 2027/2028, and the page title says 2028. If you use Connect regularly, plan on your programs staying where they are through 2027.
Taken together, Connect is the large, bond-funded building with a fixed price and a 2028 target. Pine Lake is the smaller neighborhood park with a proposed county contribution, an approved playground contract, and a target of spring 2027 for its first visible work.
Marshbank this month
Pine Lake's new features are at least a season away, so this fall's park events are at Marshbank Park. The Fall Guide reports that phase two of its paving project is finished, with new surfaces on the walking path and some roads and parking lots. Spooky Animal Storytime on October 8 is "Chilling Chickens," a Halloween story followed by a live animal encounter. The Community Hayride on October 15 has rides at 5 and 6 p.m., with cider and a Franklin Cider Mill donut, for $7 to $9. The Trick-or-Treat Trail is October 25, with four entry slots between 3 and 4:30 p.m. Child registration is $10 for residents and $15 for nonresidents. Our West Bloomfield neighborhood page has more on the township, and our earlier fall guide covers the Cass Lake and Orchard Lake Road sides.
Families settling an estate or planning a move near Long Lake Road often want to know what is changing nearby, and when. Projects like Pine Lake Park and Connect are part of that timing. Abby Kushner helps executors, trustees, and longtime owners plan around those dates calmly and discreetly. Schedule a Confidential Consultation to talk through yours.
