Parks and Recreation

Upper Makefield’s Park and Recreation Board collaborates with staff and community volunteers to maintain and to develop our two public parks.

Brownsburg Park

1455 River Road New Hope, PA 18938 (between Brownsburg Road East and Stoneybrook Road) This 37-acre park includes an ADA-compliant playground with play areas designated for younger and older children. As the park use has grown, we’ve added a pavilion, charcoal grills, a tennis court and a basketball court, trees and benches, and pet stations. History of Brownsburg Park development

Lookout Park

1565 River Road New Hope, PA 18938 (between Lurgan Road and Brownsburg Road East) This park has 3 baseball fields, 2 softball fields, the “Tenderfoot Trail” for walkers and bikers, pet stations, plus picnic tables, a snack shack and restrooms. A playground designed for kids ages 2-5 was added in 2016.

Landscape Management and Maintenance at our Parks

Lookout Park’s landscape management plan is designed to decrease residents’ exposure to ticks while at the park. The park’s No-Mow zones include deer-resistant native plants and sunny, upland meadows and butterfly gardens that typically are too hot and dry for ticks. In addition, we’ve created border paths within the park to keep you close to the natural beauty of our plantings, but away from ticks. The Township adopted an innovative maintenance program at Lookout Park designed to enhance stormwater management, increase wildlife habitat, and decrease overall maintenance costs from mowing and landscaping. This plan includes environmentally sound and financially prudent landscaping techniques that could be adopted by some Upper Makefield property owners.

State Parks and a Wildflower Preserve

Our Township parks complement the nearby Washington Crossing Historic Park, Delaware River Canal, and Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve and Tower. We encourage you to visit them all! Delaware Canal State ParkBowman’s Hill Wildflower PreserveWashington Crossing Historic State Park

Check for Ticks; Get Help with Tick ID

After visiting our parks, please check yourself, children, and pets for ticks. Learn more about managing disease-bearing ticks at the TickEncounter Resource Center. Find a tick? Snap a photo and submit it to TickSpotters.org for crowd-sourced tick survey. We’ll confirm the tick id, and email you a custom response, including the best next steps to take. View this poster, Tick Management Techniques in Lookout Park, and learn ways to adapt for tick management on your property.

Special Events

If you plan a special event that will impact traffic on the area roads, you’ll need to file a request for a Special Event, regardless of the number of attendees expected. Events attracting more than 5,000 people will require approval from the Board of Supervisors, so please submit your permit application at least 3 months in advance.

Pavilion Use

To reserve the park pavilion, you must apply for a permit. Please allow at least 10 working days to process the permit. Remember that reservations are not finalized until documentation and payment are received.

Dogs are Welcome

Park visitors are welcome to bring their leashed dogs to the common areas of Township-owned parks. Please remember to curb your pets and that dogs are not allowed on playing fields.

Memorial and Commemorative Trees

We welcome donations of memorial and commemorative trees and plaques. They must meet the standards described here. Please contact the Township Office to discuss your plans 215-968-3340.

Buy a Brick Campaign

If you would like to purchase an engraved brick to be placed along the sidewalk to the Brownsburg Park pavilion, submit the completed form. Cost is $50. Here’s the Buy-a-Brick form.