Howard Park — Attraction in South Bend

This happened today around the times 5:30-7PM 5/2/24 Absolutely terrible environment!! From the children on the playground, parents down to the ground workers!!! I have children under the age of 5 and while at this part Group fights occurred where security had to intervene. Teens smoking, parents harassing other children! Telling them they too big or old to be playing on the sets because 1-2 year olds are there…. Excuse me, I have a three-year-old that accompanies me while we all play at the park and I have never told another parent or an older child to stop playing at a child’s park just because my child needed a little more supervision.

The WORSE part about this was the grounds keeper!!! He did not tell me his name but he made sure to tell me that I was MENTALLY ILL for allowing my 3 YEAR OLD to walk under crossing tape… I did not allow him to do that. I tried to stop my child in fact. The only other way to get to my child would have been to go through the entire park and walk around near the parking lot just to get to him when my child was already going through and running to the street. In my eyes, if I would’ve went the long way round, my child could’ve gotten hit by a car, but instead the groundskeeper approached me and basically walked me back to my car, cussing me out and telling me that that I had mental issues….

On top of that The groundskeeper told me that he would try to get me kicked out of the park and that he knew the mayor!!!! Congratulations. All he kept saying was that I was mental and that he was going to have to do the entire job all over again, even though we were not even in the grass!!!! I tried to explain.

This is when he tried be funny and give a fist bump, which felt like a racial trigger to me, as if he was disregarding anything that I had to say, and trying to make some type of common ground with my race by initiating such a jester that he assumed.

It’s not like a high five or thumbs up. I felt racially charged. By the way he felt he could talk to me in front of all my children. The way he chased me down the side walk, the way he mad the jester to find peace… the fact that he said he knew the major and that he hope my children and I are never able to come back to this park. He said he would tell the manager of the park…. Well that’s great email me please!!! I want this man fired. This park is unacceptable!!! And to think the only reason why I came to this park was because I found out that kids kingdom was being shut down soon.

Shame!! Shame!! Shame!!! If I have to project my kids from other parents, fights and the workers… I dont want my children to be there anyways!!

If I could give this place 0 stars I would!!!!! Honestly I will write a review everyday until something changes. I have not had one good experience at the part so far!!!!

Play at your own...

I will NEVER come to a south bend festival again. Only elkhart from now on where I'm treated with respect like an adult. It was very Orwellian the way they want to control every aspect and dehumanize you to make sure you understand you have no rights and aren't allowed to make adult decisions. I've never been treated with so much disrespect by festival staff. I was here recently for my first south bend festival, the world one where each tent was supposed to be a different continent. I'm from elkhart. Okay so the city hosted it, and they hired a private security firm???? And the first crazy thing they did to me was forced me to dump out my tea cause there is a public drinking problem. My tea was non-alcoholic, I can't have alcohol for health reasons. That's the first freedom they took. Then they had metal detectors!!!! They took away my pocket knife that I use to eat apples because I have no teeth. They want me to seriously believe it's okay for them to take away my eating utensils in the name of "safety" what a joke!!! Then they are selling alcohol in there!!!! They want you drunk they just wanna be in control so they'll punish me so they can gain that control. They said I could get tap water in the event, first of all that's not my custom tea, second tap water is notorious for being contaminated. I work hard to distill the RO filter my water cause I love myself. Groos. They said the metal detectors are necessary cause they already turned 4 people with guns away. Duh!!! This is America and IN is a constitutional carry state. I carry also just happened not to that day. What a bunch of idiots to be surprised people publicly carry guns in America, its our right!!!! I felt so unsafe being fenced in with such a large disarmed crowd. No wonder south bend has so many public shootings. They have a habit of disarming us and making us sitting ducks/easy targets. South Bend will never become safe as long as they take away our rights to defend ourselves against attack. Also, it's pretty messed up they hire private security instead of using the police force. They used both, but when govt hires private guns it's never ever for good reason. Elkhart doesn't disarm you and trap you in with one way in and one way out. How south bend politicians can't understand that they create the unsafe situations is beyond me. All I can do is vote with my dollar. South Bend festivals will never ever see another dollar of mine that I worked hard for and sweat for. Just to take away my tea and eating utensils. What a joke. WHAT A JOKE!!! Oh, the people attending were cool though. I liked meeting and visiting with the locals. It's the politicians who think we are children, they are the problem. But hey SB you voted for em. You made your bed,...

Its ok! It seems more like a non profit Organization than a public park? I have no complaints considering few of us homeless used it as a warming allowed warming center (Christmas observed holiday, monday the 26th) they seperated us from paid guest, to a conference room! our luggage outside the door! one of us 5 had drank somehow, it didnt go well for him! city wifi out there! Fire pits were going on before we got there (a cained handicapped slowed me and another down to 4 times the 15 minute walk estimate)! Security called Chris to see the drunk guy! security is alright, decent! unsure where the only cigarette smoker of 5 of smoked cigarette outside somewhere! (not allowed on property) 4 of us abide the rules, drunk guy napped sitting in plastic chair! (not allowed) only two visits, 5 on the 23rd & 26th of december! (when we absolutely had no place to go - until weather amnesty shelter hours, which are only 12 nightly hours! about 10 of us in all usually hang at the library! when that library closed, theres nowhere :-( grateful this event center is an option, but not very enjoyable for us! Wifi is ok (vpn help for even some shopping, movie streaming sites arent accessible)! The library is the best option we have (to keep warm) being severly or mentally disabled really suck in this county! oaklawn doesnt fo anything but assign a psychiatrist which prescribes drowsy meds, scedules 3½ months out! medicine we cant take or be banned from placed for sleeping :-( case managers dont check on us, nothing! we're like stuck wushing for...