Mayor Henry and Director Moll Kick off Public Campaign by Accepting Funds from Grassroots Group Called “Taylor's Friendship Circle”
Mayor Tom Henry and Al Moll, Director of Parks & Recreation, called on city residents to support a public campaign for Indiana's first Boundless Playground. City Council members and representatives from Turnstone and League for the Blind & Disabled added their support to the project today.
“There are more than 100 Boundless Playgrounds across the nation, and we are proud to create Indiana's first facility of this nature,” said Mayor Henry. “This venue, which is the vision and dream of 6th-grader Taylor Reuille, will serve the region's families and children with disabilities.”
The Fort Wayne Boundless Playground movement, called Taylor's Friendship Circle, got started when Taylor, a student at Harlan Elementary School, realized that there are many kids with disabilities who couldn't play at playgrounds in this area. She researched and found that a Boundless Playground would offer amazing play opportunities for children with and without disabilities, including those with physical, sensory, developmental and cognitive disabilities.
Taylor and her mother, Kasandra Booher, presented the first Boundless Playground private contribution to the Mayor totaling $10,758.43. These proceeds came from small fundraisers that have been organized throughout the past few months, including funds contributed by Taylor's teachers and fellow classmates at Harlan Elementary. They donated their nickels and dimes to the project.
“While the Kreager Endowment at the Parks & Recreation Department has submitted the first major private gift of $250,000 and the land for the facility, this project will require both public and private financial support,” said Moll. “Taylor's dream provides an excellent opportunity for the community to get behind a great cause for the right reason.”
Fort Wayne's Boundless Playground at Kreager Park will have three pods of playground equipment and activity areas, a splash pad, accessible ramps and walkways, a picnic pavilion and accessible parking. Landscaping will add to the sensory experience of the facility, as will the multiple types of surface used in the various pods, including sand, poured-in-place rubber, mulch and natural turf.
For details about the Boundless Playground and for those interested in helping support the campaign, visit www.fortwayneparks.org or call 260-427-6000. Checks made payable to the Fort Wayne Park Foundation may be sent to 705 E. State Blvd., Fort Wayne, IN 46805.
More information about Taylor's Friendship Circle Boundless Playground efforts can be found at www.taylorsdream.com and at www.boundlessplayground.org,
Boundless Playground Details:
“Playing is critical to child development and health, and this funding campaign would provide 'play equity' for all those who wish to participate. Indiana's first Boundless Playground will be a wonderful and needed addition to our City and region!” Al Moll, Director, Parks & Recreation
A Boundless Playground creates'¦
A place where children, with and without disabilities, can develop essential skills for life as they learn through play. It includes the features and amenities that address the needs of children with physical, developmental, cognitive and sensory disabilities.
The Fort Wayne Boundless Playground'¢ features could include:
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Three circular pods of playground equipment and activity areas, which will be placed in proximity to one another and on changing elevations, with accessible ramps and walkways to and among each:
Alpha Pod will provide play structures that include slides, tunnels, ramps, and a playhouse
Beta Pod will provide sand tables, a swimming boat, and a Braille panel
Gamma Pod will provide structures such as a fossil dig, solar sound station with solar powered features, and a climbing wall
A splashpad for water play; the splashpad will connect the three activity pods like the spokes of a wheel
Safe surfaces: mulch, natural turf, sand, and poured-in-place rubber
Four shade structures for rest, socialization, reflection, and relaxation
A covered, open-sided picnic pavilion w/ accessible restrooms
Landscaped natural areas for outdoor movement and sensory stimulation
Concrete and asphalt walkways, fully accessible by wheelchairs
An entrance staging area for teachers or families and groups to gather and discuss the unique nature of the playground's experience
Access road for vans and buses: discharge riders and turn around
Ample, accessible parking: ample ADA-specific designated spaces
Collaborators
Taylor's Friendship Circle, initially a grassroots group of friends, neighbors, and family members, is the result of the energy of 11-year-old Taylor Reuille and her mother Kasandra Booher, R.N. Collaborators include:
- Fort Wayne Parks & Recreation
- Fort Wayne Park Foundation
- League for the Blind & Disabled
- Turnstone Center for Children and Adults with Disabilities
-
E. Allen Family Resource Center
Capital Investment
Site Development Estimates
Excavation (44,000 sq. ft.) $55,000
Asphalt Parking (22,000 sq. ft.) $70,000
Concrete Walkways (14,000 sq. ft.) $70,000
Landscape Areas (12,000 sq. ft.) $30,000
Sanitary (200 LF) $6,000
Water (800 LF) $20,000
Electrical (1000 LF) $20,000
Retaining Walls (500 LF) $70,000
Site Subtotal $341,000
Architectural/Engineering Estimates
Architectural/Engineering Fees $30,000
Playground Development Estimates
Alpha Pod Play Equipment $53,000
Beta Pod Play Equipment $27,000
Gamma Pod Play Equipment $107,000
Additional Play Equipment $30,000
Poured-in-Place Rubber (8,000 sq ft) $210,000
Various Other Play Surfaces (8,000 sq. ft.) $50,000
Playground Subtotal $477,000
Structural Features
Splash Pad $100,000
Restroom Building $120,000
Four Shade Structures (30'x30' ea.) $40,000
Structural Subtotal $260,000
Contingency fund $200,000
PROJECT TOTAL $1,308,000