Recordpub.com - Ravenna playground to open June 16

By Colin McEwen
Record-Courier staff writer
One year ago, elementary school students in Ravenna met with an architectural firm and designed their ultimate dream playground.
That dream, nurtured by the non-profit organization, Friends of the Park, will soon be a reality with plans to open the playground June 16.
Beginning June 9, the park will be constructed in a seven-day building bonanza with the assistance of an all-volunteer community effort.
"It's the only park of its kind in Portage County," said Amy Michael, Friends of the Park co-founder. "It will bring people here."
Included in the plans for the playground, from the imaginations of elementary school children, are a castle, a play beauty shop and a bridge separating the two. Also slated for construction are a rock-climbing wall, a rocket ship, a hot-air balloon and play telephones.
The park is currently referred to as "Portage County Community-Built Playground," but naming rights will be offered to the donor who gives the largest donation.
With a projected price tag of more than $200,000, Michael said the project is a complete volunteer effort.
"We'll need 2,000 hands," she said. "This takes us back to the value of teamwork."
A portion of the land at Chestnut Hills Park on North Chestnut Street was donated by the Ravenna Parks and Recreation Department, and the Friends of the Parks has raised more than $60,000, with about $150,000 to go.
Michael said the project got a boost recently when children's diabetic pharmaceutical company, Novo Nordisk, expressed interest in donating funds to the playground.
In return, the company would host a children's diabetic day at the playground sometime in August, she said.
Michael said the group is still seeking volunteers, and hoping to raise money for materials.
City Councilman Gene Brown, who serves on the Ravenna Parks and Recreation Board and acts as the council's liaison for Parks and Recreation, said the 13,000-square-foot playground is taking "monumental steps."
He said a $100,000 state grant the group recently applied for could be a springboard toward the playground's success.
"It's a vision to have something in Ravenna like this that the whole community can be proud of," Brown said. "We want the community park to bring the community together. We want this to be a jewel for the city."
Michael said there is more work to be done, including raising the remainder of the funds, signing up volunteers and finding people to supply the volunteers with refreshments.
She said she looks forward to the community taking part in the successful completion of the dream Ravenna children envisioned nine months ago.
"It's one of those things that when people see it, they will say "wow,'" Michael said. "It's amazing."
For more information call Michael at (330) 296-9694.