What's that going to be on the Lewis and Clark campus in Edwardsville?
Excavation has begun for Edwardsville's new all-abilities playground.
The playground, set to open in midsummer, will be built on the N.O. Nelson campus of Lewis & Clark Community College, north of the historic Nickel Plate Station, 600 Troy Road.
The project is a collaboration among the city, the college and the Edwardsville Community Foundation to make accessible play areas available to as many people as possible.
"Funding for the approximately $600,000 playground is being covered by a donation from the David Kriege Family, the last owner of Kriege Hardware, which operated in the city for nearly a century," the webpage said. "The Edwardsville Community Foundation was entrusted with using the donation to enhance the quality of life through recreation, preservation and beautification in the city."
Edwardsville Parks and Recreation Director Nate Tingley said construction will come in phases. After excavation is finished, the playground will be installed, followed by concrete work, installation of the pour-in-play surface and fencing. Plantings and signage will be added later, in the fall.
A city news story about the park said the all-abilities playground will be enclosed by a fence and include landscaping and other infrastructure enhancements, which will be paid for through the Edwardsville Enhancement Fund. The fund was established in 2023 with a dedicated 0.25% sales tax for green space acquisition, park improvements, police and fire pensions and capital projects.
Alderman SJ Morrison discussed his involvement in the project, explaining his nephew is in a wheelchair and has special needs. His family lives in Edwardsville, and they currently drive to O'Fallon and Highland for him to use a playground.
"My nieces and nephews started to brainstorm ideas on how we could try to advocate for an all-abilities playground in Edwardsville," Morrison said. "Long story short, they were talking about fundraisers and all sorts of things to try to raise the funds, but this is something that city parks staff has talked about for years as being a gap in our park facilities. So when the Kriege fund became available, we saw this as an opportunity to utilize a portion of the Kriege fund to build something that would really be impactful for young people of all abilities. So obviously, this is going to be an accessible playground for individuals with mobility issues, but it's for all children."
The playground will feature traditional equipment and elements accessible to children who use wheelchairs, Morrison said. He said the new playground will benefit the community because of its central location and because it shows how the city can partner with organizations and institutions on a significant improvement.
Tingley said the new all-abilities playground was conceived, designed and drafted as a fully inclusive space.
"The city wanted a centrally located playground that would be easy to spot from a main thoroughfare and easy to reach for drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians," he said in an email. "The perfect spot was located right on the Lewis and Clark Community College campus here in Edwardsville, and with their blessing and a $1/month lease in hand, the city got plans designed and (is) currently working with contractors on the specific timeline."
He said substantial completion will occur this summer, with landscaping and signage as the project's final stages, slated for later this fall.
Cathy Hensley, communications coordinator for the city, said the city's first all-abilities park, known as the Boundless Playground, is at Edwardsville Township Park, also known as Supervisor Robert C. Stille Edwardsville Township Airplane Community Park.
"It was a signature fundraising project led by the Junior Service Club of Edwardsville/Glen Carbon, which is a tremendously amazing community organization," Hensley said in an email. "The playground was built in 2013 on a plot of park land donated for the project by the township."
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