Kids and their families will have a new reason to go to the local park.

Seven playgrounds in East Vancouver and the west side of the city are getting upgrades totaling $4.5 million.

These improvements include new play equipment and surfacing, accessible pathways, and amenities like seating and drinking fountains, according to a report submitted to the Vancouver board of parks and recreation.

The playgrounds are in Ash Park, Beaconsfield Park, Cedar Cottage Park, Charleson Park, Jones Park, Kaslo Park, and Winona Park.

“Staff are currently working on detailed designs and tenders for seven (7) playground renewals, with construction scheduled to start this summer or early fall,” landscape architects Amy Gore and Lehran Hache wrote in a report to the park board.

Gore and Hache noted that there are 160 playgrounds managed by the park board, and many of these are “reaching the end of their lifespan”.

“As such, replacement of playgrounds is an ongoing priority,” they stated.

The park board in 2015 completed an assessment of playgrounds across the city. Since that year, 17 playgrounds have been upgraded.

The staff report recommended advance board approval for the plan.

“It is expected that the final tenders for these projects will be received over the summer (late July to mid-September) when the Board is not in session,” according to the report. “Recognizing that many of the tenders received will likely exceed $500,000 and require Board approval, and that some may exceed $750,000 and require Bid Committee approval, staff are seeking Board approval…prior to receiving the final tenders and pricing in order to avoid project delays.”

The report is in park board’s agenda Monday (July 8).