Stewart park offers space and facilities for outdoor recreation such as frisbee, tennis, basketball, paddling, and fishing.

There is an expansive, accessible playground that includes features to make it easier for children with wheelchairs or mobility aids to play, along with a splash pad fountain that runs in summer.

[2] Before the North American continent had been settled by Europeans, the indigenous peoples of the Cayuga Nation founded the village of Neodakheat in the area where Stewart Park is now located.

It was named after famous ornithologist and Cayuga Bird Club president Louis Agassiz Fuertes upon his death in 1927.

[7] In 1920, Mayor Edwin C. Stewart declared during his inauguration speech that it was a "travesty" that Ithaca residents couldn't enjoy the lake without trespassing on private property.

[8] A section of the Cayuga Waterfront Trail was completed in 2010, linking the Farmers Market at Steamboat Landing to the Visitors Center.

A series of severe thunderstorms during the summer of 2021 caused "devastating" damage to Stewart Park and Newman Golf Course.

[10] This effort began with the renovation of the Mayor Stewart Memorial Flagpole garden and clean up of the Picnic Pavilion and Wharton Building[17] Since that time, Friends of Stewart Park in partnership with the City of Ithaca, have led a major revitalization effort including reconstruction of the small Tea Pavilion, restoration of the Picnic Pavilion, carousel, Fuertes swan pond overlook, roof replacements on the Wharton Building and Cascadilla Boathouse, and many smaller improvements throughout the park.

[18] Further planned improvements include a new splash pad, added restrooms, and the creation of the Wharton Studio Museum and Park Visitor Center with a cafe.