ALTON - The Alton Fitness Court is officially open.
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On Sept. 23, 2025, the community came together for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the installation of the fitness court at Riverfront Park. The Alton Parks and Recreation Department collaborated with the National Fitness Campaign and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois to fund and install the court.
“This is a wonderful, wonderful thing for our community,” said Mayor David Goins. “We’re so proud to see this down here. It’s such a beautiful venue, the river, the bridge, the amphitheater, the marina. It’s just a wonderful, wonderful thing that we have for our community.”
The fitness court has several stations where community members can complete exercises, as well as an open space for fitness classes. Lyndsey Younger, executive director of the Alton Parks and Recreation Department, shared that the project has been in the works since December 2024 when Goins received an email from National Fitness Campaign and shared it with her.
The National Fitness Campaign is an initiative that aims to fund the construction of fitness courts in communities across the U.S. The City of Alton worked closely with the Parks and Recreation Department to secure the funding needed for the court.
The National Fitness Campaign and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois awarded the department a $60,000 grant. Alton Township also contributed $100,000, and the Madison County PEP Grant funded the remainder of the project.
“We’re proud to be one of 20 leading communities in Illinois selected by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois and National Fitness Campaign to join in this important initiative,” said Damian Jones on behalf of the City of Alton during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “The fitness court is a wonderful example of partnership across public and private sectors to help break down barriers to accessible programming in our community.”
During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, students from Marquette Catholic High School — Laila Davis, Allie Weiner, Jack Beaber and Jack Rea — demonstrated how to use the equipment, guided by Recreation Supervisor Sabrina Kalips. Community members can scan a QR code at the fitness court to see examples on how to use the equipment.
Younger added that the Parks and Recreation Department plans to host many classes in the coming months, both free and for a small fee. She encourages people to follow the official Alton Parks and Recreation Facebook page for more information about the fitness court and its classes, or to call the department at (618) 463-3580 with any questions about the court or how to reserve it.
“My goal was to offer a state-of-the-art free outdoor fitness area for the public to use,” Younger added. “We’re looking forward to offering a lot of fun classes in 2026.”
