At nearly 55 acres, Horner Park is one of the
largest parks on the North Side and boasts six softball fields, six
baseball fields, four
football/soccer fields, four outdoor basketball standards, five tennis
courts, outdoor volleyball, a playground, a relaxing nature area and
plenty of open green
space for picnics and fun. The fieldhouse includes two full gyms, a
woodshop, an art studio and several meeting rooms that even include
kitchens.
The park, located at the major intersection of Montrose and California Avenues, plays a prominent role in its Irving Park neighborhood. Horner Park hosts a number of holiday and seasonal special events, including an annual pumpkin patch, and various public community meetings. It offers programming to meet every possible age group, interest and need.
Area youth and teens play sports, such as basketball, football, volleyball, softball, track & field and floor hockey. Youth also participate in recreational tumbling and gymnastics and soccer. Preschoolers get started as early as age three, building skills in tumbling and floor hockey. The park offers traditional early childhood recreation classes—preschool; playschool; Moms, Pops & Tots; fun with food, theatre games and storytelling. Adults join in athletics with basketball and softball leagues.
On the cultural side, Horner Park offers woodcraft for all ages in its downstairs shop. Youth and teens choose from acting, multi-cultural art, piano and guitar. For adults there are more specialized classes, such as tile mosaic, clay/hand building, open pottery studio and jazz band.
Horner is one of the few parks to teach two levels of American Sign Language and line dancing for seniors, and it runs an active teen leadership club. The park is also a site for A Plus Education Centers, which provides after-school supplemental education in reading, writing, math and study skills to children in grades one through twelve in Chicago.
