Inclusive playground now closer to reality

Final design for facility coming soon
 

  • The preliminary design for the Hamilton County Inclusive Playground is seen in this artist rendering from the designers. Playground organizers are awaiting the final design which will add about 6,000 square feet to the project. The top of the photo represents Old Creek Road where the playground will be located.
    The preliminary design for the Hamilton County Inclusive Playground is seen in this artist rendering from the designers. Playground organizers are awaiting the final design which will add about 6,000 square feet to the project. The top of the photo represents Old Creek Road where the playground will be located.

    With recent fundraising gains, opportunities for positive public exposure and the final design only days away, Hamilton County’s inclusive playground project is starting to gain some real traction. A golf tournament held at Poco Creek Golf Course in Aurora on June 28 saw approximately 72 golfers participating and the event raised $10,349 toward the estimated $1.5 million dollar cost of the project. 
    Cami Knust, who had the initial inspiration for a playground where disabled and able-bodied children could play together, says the first boost to the project’s momentum came when, as a newly-added non-profit to the Heartland United Way’s Go Big GIVE campaign in May, the one-day fundraiser netted the Hamilton County Inclusive Playground donations totaling $96,810. The 162 donations during the campaign far exceeded the organization’s goal of $30,000 which included a $15,000 matching donation.  
    Community awareness of the project got a boost during A’ROR’N Days when the playground organizers entered a float in the annual parade on Saturday and won first prize in the Organization category. The colorful float featured a number of local children and models of some of the playground equipment. 
    “That was just a nice way to raise awareness and have a lot of the community see us,” Knust said of the effort.
    Having received the preliminary design for the playground several weeks ago, Knust said the facility has grown significantly since the initial concept. 
    “We just wanted to make a few changes,” Knust said. “There were a few pieces of equipment that we wanted to include that weren’t on the original plan.” 
    Knust says the original design called for the playground to be roughly 10,000 square feet in size, but with adding the additional equipment it has grown to nearly 16,000 square feet. Once the final design is in hand which will facilitate the development of promotional materials, Knust says the fundraising campaign can begin in earnest. Fundraising ideas that have been considered so far include a fun run and possibly a pickleball tournament. 
    With regard to the level of community interest in the project, Knust said, “There’s been a lot of great interest, a lot of great support, which we’re thankful for, and people just seem to be really excited about it.”