Playground Adventure Built Into Central Park Rock
A landscape led play space with a mini bridge and a 45 foot granite slide near East 67th Street.
🪨 Play Shaped by Stone
At E 67th Street in Manhattan, Billy Johnson Playground turns Central Park's rocky language into a place to climb, scramble, and slide. Landscape architect M. Paul Friedberg designed the play space with plantings, trails, a wooden shelter reminiscent of the nearby Dene Summerhouse, and a mini Gapstow Bridge. The custom elements echo the surrounding terrain, making the route itself part of the activity. Granite slides echo the experience of moving down the park's rock outcrops, while the terrain keeps each route feeling connected to the surrounding landscape.
Built for preschool and school age children, the playground is free to enter and stays open daily from 6 AM to 1 AM. Bring a child ready to move between the wooden shelter, the trails, and the rock inspired play elements, then leave the city grid for a few laps of Central Park terrain. The layout gives a family room to explore at different speeds, with each turn revealing another piece of the landscape led design.
