Since the 2025 floods, Forsyth has been deciding what to put back at Shadowrock Park, knowing the water will be back too. The park sits on the shore of Bull Shoals Lake. It's the city's main recreation area and the home of the annual Easter Egg Hunt. It's also next to the U.S. 160 bridge over Swan Creek, which MoDOT is getting ready to replace. Every choice made at the park over the past year has started from the same idea: the lake will rise again, so the park has to be able to take it. The bridge's story leads back to the same water.

The Water Has Been Setting the Schedule

The run of trouble started early in the summer of 2025. Minutes from the Forsyth Board of Aldermen's June 16, 2025 meeting show that flooding at Shadowrock led city staff to seal manholes and check the lake level every day. By late August the park was closed. On Aug. 26, 2025, KLFC radio reported that the city would keep it shut "until at least Friday" while staff checked safety and flood damage to infrastructure. The city called the work needed to reopen substantial.

The reopening came in stages. By Sept. 1, 2025, KLFC reported where things stood:

• Reopened for day use: the picnic area, boat ramp, playground, and tennis and pickleball courts
• Still closed: restrooms, held back for safety work
• Still closed: the arena and ball fields
• Still pending: electrical reconnection work

A year later, the campground is the piece that hasn't come back. The City of Forsyth's Parks & Recreation page, last updated Aug. 25, 2026, lists Shadowrock as "Open with limited use — camping closed." It says camping is closed until further notice and that camping rates will resume when the campground reopens. No date is posted.

So day use is back and overnight stays aren't. On a weekend afternoon, the boat launch, fish cleaning station, picnic areas and courts are the parts of Shadowrock that matter most, and the city lists those as amenities.

A Playground Built to Leave Before the Water Arrives

The most telling decision from the cleanup was about what kind of equipment to put back.

KY3 reported in September 2025 that Shadow Rock Park floods often. After the latest flood, Forsyth Police Chief Patrick Gray said some playground equipment and buildings were no longer safe and had to be removed. He told the station the damage had built up "after multiple floodings over the years."

KY3 also reported that the council was looking for equipment that could be moved easily when the park floods, so it would stay in good shape. That changes what a playground at Shadowrock is. Fixed equipment gets damaged with every flood. Movable equipment can be taken out of the water's path. The plan accepts that the park will flood and tries to make each flood cheaper.

Who pays was part of the conversation as well. Mayor Julie AuBuchon asked for patience in the same KY3 report and explained the city's thinking:

"We want to do this the best way going forward, and it is city dollars taking care of the park, which many county people use too."

Alderman Dennis Winzenried told KY3 the park draws families from across the county, calling it "a great gathering place" with pavilions, picnic spots by the lake, fishing, "and then the playground equipment that's still left." The city and the county both helped with cleanup.

The city's park listing still includes a playground, but it doesn't say whether new flood-ready pieces have gone in. The tentative agenda for the Oct. 19, 2026 aldermen meeting has no Shadowrock item. Its park business is about courts at Shoals Bend Park.

Right now, the water that caused all this is well down. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' current conditions report put Bull Shoals at 653.29 feet at 5 a.m. on Oct. 19, 2026. That's 5.71 feet below the top of the conservation pool and 41.71 feet below the top of the flood pool. The reading changes daily, but this fall the lake is sitting low.

The Bridge Next Door Came With the Lake

The steel truss that carries U.S. 160 over Swan Creek is MoDOT Bridge No. J0952, a camelback through truss 444 feet 11 inches long and 26 feet 7 inches wide. It was built by Porter-Dewitt Construction Company of Poplar Bluff. According to MoDOT's historic bridge record, the bridge was finished in November 1952. It's considered eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, partly because of its link to Bull Shoals Lake and Dam and partly because it's an uncommon late example of a Missouri State Highway Department through truss.

That ties the bridge to Bull Shoals Dam in the record itself, and Bull Shoals is the same lake that sealed Shadowrock's manholes in June 2025.

MoDOT now plans to replace the bridge. Its project page puts the new bridge just north of the current one. It will be 8 feet wider and 21 feet longer, at an estimated cost of $11.2 million. The old truss comes down once the new bridge is finished.

The truss could still end up somewhere else. MoDOT asked for proposals to relocate and reuse the bridge or its parts, with a deadline of Dec. 10, 2025. Its Free Bridges page still lists Swan Creek among the bridges available for reuse or relocation.

What the Construction Years Mean for a Park Day

Most of the questions locals have about this project are really about getting to Shadowrock, and MoDOT's answers are fairly reassuring.

The current bridge stays open while the new one goes up next to it. U.S. 160 will remain open for most of the work. Expect short closures while crews move equipment or materials into the work zone. The one long closure comes at the end, when the road is shut for up to 36 hours to tie the new bridge into the existing roadway. MoDOT isn't planning signed detours.

On the park itself, MoDOT's FAQ says there are no plans to close Shadow Rock Park during construction. It does say traffic may sometimes be blocked from using or passing under the old or new bridge for safety. Put that next to the flood history and you get a park that has had two stretches of changing conditions back to back. The flood repairs started in 2025, and the bridge work runs from spring 2027 through December 2028. For a regular Shadowrock visitor, that means checking the city's page before a long-planned outing.

The city has an easy way to keep up. Text FORSYTHCITY to 888777 for Nixle alerts on your phone. For park pricing or reservations, call City Hall at (417) 546-4763.

When Shadowrock Comes Up Short, the Shoreline Keeps Going

The best backup for Shadowrock starts right in the park. The Dr. William Rosten Nature Trails follow Bull Shoals Lake from Shadowrock Park to Empire Park at Powersite Dam. The trail is paved and ADA accessible, so it works for strollers, wheelchairs and an everyday walk. Empire Park, at the far end, has its own public boat launch and lake access. That makes it the nearest alternative for putting a boat in if the area under the bridges is restricted on a given day.

For the playground and court time Shadowrock is still rebuilding, there's Shoals Bend Park, the city's newest park, at Corner Stone Lane near Burmingham Road and East State Highway 76. It's open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and has a playground, a large picnic pavilion, a softball field, basketball and pickleball courts, a concession stand and a big grassy area. It's also where the city softball league plays. The Oct. 19, 2026 aldermen agenda includes a discussion of authorizing HDR Engineering to draw up a plan for courts there. That's only an agenda item for now, not an approved project.

For riding rather than walking, the Gateway Trail starts behind the Boys & Girls Club off Coy Boulevard, east of U.S. 160. It's winding singletrack that crosses a creek and several bridges as it runs through the city's Nature Preserve.

For boat launches beyond Shadowrock and Empire Park, the city lists River Run and Beaver Creek, both Corps of Engineers campgrounds that charge fees, plus Rockaway Beach Park and K-Dock.

At Step Above Realty, we keep an eye on projects like the Swan Creek bridge because they change everyday life in Forsyth long before they ever show up in a listing. If you own a home near the U.S. 160 corridor and want to know how the next few years might affect it, ask us for a free home valuation. We'll walk through it with you, neighbor to neighbor.