The City of Calgary is now re-opening Devonian Gardens in phases — starting with the playground which opens Thursday.

Problematic planter beds forced the closure of the garden as crews worked to repair leaky planters.

The city initially thought the entire park would need to be closed for safety reasons while the reconstruction work was being completed — and had not expected to reopen until July 2017.

The gardens had initially been slated to open at the end of 2016. The delay comes five years after the city-owned park was fully redesigned and renovated at a cost of $37 million. (City of Calgary)

"This is the first phase of the park that we're reopening following the waterproofing repairs. We're going to continue to open new areas of the park as we complete those repairs. And it's going to be phased, probably with the next opening within a month or two." said David Harrison from Calgary Parks.

The playground area includes 11 trees, 11 shrubs and palms, and over 1,100 ground plants that have been replanted.

The Plus 15 connecting the play area with the mall's food court is also being reopened.

Harrison anticipates Devonian Gardens will be fully re-opened to the public by late summer.