The project is a collaboration between the College and the Town of Brunswick, with Town staff having participated in planning and design development. Sashi Misner, a landscape architect and experienced designer of natural playscapes, worked on the playground's development with College and Town representatives to create safe, accessible, and distinct areas for toddlers and children five to twelve years old.

"Children need safe spaces and opportunities to play," said Tom Farrell, Brunswick's director of parks and recreation. "The current playground has been a popular go-to location for countless families with young children for close to four decades, but during that time, the playground industry has seen changes in safety requirements that have prompted the need for a new facility compliant with these standards."

A survey yielding approximately 500 responses from the public informed the plan, which calls for a level, ADA-compliant woodchip-covered surface that will include rot-resistant natural wood climbing structures and other equipment for different age groups. The flat playing area also provides improved sightlines for parents. The new plan reclaims parts of the adjacent blacktop area and includes plant beds, retains the many existing shaded areas, and increases the amount of seating available for parents. It also features a basketball/multi-use court and low split-rail fencing along Longfellow Avenue.

Bowdoin will pay for and manage the project at a cost of $450,000 and it will be built on property owned by the College. The Town will lease the playground from the College at a cost of $250 annually over twenty years, for a total town contribution of $5,000. The Town is responsible for disassembling the existing playground and will provide inspections and maintenance.

The Longfellow Playground will close Tuesday, September 3, 2024, as work begins to remove the existing forty-year-old structures that no longer meet current standards and will remain closed until the project's anticipated completion in November.