If you’ve visited the popular Springfield park, Sequiota, in recent years, you likely saw big metal barricades blocking access to both foot bridges and the east side of the pond.
These bridges lead to a set of informal footpaths — trekked by locals for decades — along a steep hillside and pretty bluffs. The paths give you a bird’s-eye view of Sequiota’s pond, especially pretty in early spring when the blue water peeks through bare trees.
But for the greater part of two years, locals haven’t been able to access these trails without violating a city ordinance (City Ordinance 82), which states that visitors of the park cannot enter any area where a posted sign prohibits it.
I send a “things to do” email every Sunday night to tons of moms in the Springfield, Mo. area. It’s full of free, often outdoorsy ideas that always match the season we’re in.
The blockades first began in January 2024, when beavers gnawed down several trees in the area, creating hazardous spots along the trails. But then a massive wind storm happened last April, taking down trees all across the city and adding to the damage in the area, according to Jenny Fillmer Edwards, public information administrator for the Springfield-Greene County Park Board.
“(The beavers) coupled with the storms last spring means there are a lot of trees down in that area,” Edwards said in a phone call on March 12. “As you can probably imagine, it’s hard to get a forestry crew over there. They can walk across the bridge, but pulling a log out of there — you can’t get any equipment to physically remove large logs.”
When the entire property is open, Sequiota Park encompasses a total of 29 acres, relatively small for its popularity. But the more frequented areas — the pond, playgrounds, cave, and parking area — amount to only 13 acres. (The cave, once a popular destination for locals according to Ozarks Alive, has also been closed to the public to protect the Grey Bat population.)
“Sequiota is one of Springfield’s favorite parks,” Edwards said. “When I ask people what their favorite park is, they say one of four: Nathaniel Greene/Close Memorial, Phelps Grove, Doling and Sequiota. It’s such an interesting place and has been for such a long time. It’s been used as a park for well over a century. People have always responded to the creek that runs from the cave, the lake with the little islands, the big rock everyone likes to climb on. It’s a much-loved and heavily used park.”
Its popularity is one of the reasons for the closures east of the pond. When asked why downed trees would be a cause for trail closure, Edwards said there are plenty of public areas with downed trees that don’t get shut down.
“There’s not a hard-and-fast rule. I would say this area is closed because of the sheer multitude of people, especially those with little kids,” Edwards said. “There’s a sense of discovery at Sequiota. Water is exciting. A lot of parents are bringing children to this park. Whereas in a wooded area or a remote area, there’s not so much a crush of folks visiting. That combined with the amount of damage, coupled with that area is on a steep slope — you’re scrambling up and down rocks, some places are muddy — coupled with proximity to lake. Those four factors put together. We’ve just not been able to get back there and mitigate those issues.”
When might those issues be addressed?
“I don’t have a date when that will happen,” Edwards said.
The Park Board employs a very small forestry team (just three or four people), and they’ve been occupied with storm damage for a year.
Until the hazards have been addressed, the Park Board is asking that visitors stick to the playground, paths, ponds and other open areas at Sequiota.
DEAR SPRINGFIELD MAMA 
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