Mentor pursues funding for new ADA-accessible playground

The city of Mentor is paving the way for a play place that is welcoming to all children.

City Council recently authorized a $90,000 Ohio Department of Natural Resources NatureWorks grant application for an ADA-compliant playground at the Civic Center.

The $350,000-plus project calls for replacing an existing play structure between the Center’s Waterpark and ice arena.

“The area of the new proposed playground would be larger, and the ground surface treatment would be much improved,” said Mentor Grants Coordinator Abe Bruckman. “The new playground equipment to be installed will include designs and features to make it friendlier and easier to use by individuals with disabilities.”

Proposed features include:

• Wide access ramps to more than 50 percent of the elevated units

• Poured-in-Place rubber, making the entire play surface wheelchair-accessible

• Merry Go All Whirl, allowing users to transfer out of a wheelchair onto the platform and into high-back, molded seats

• Rockin’ Robin egg-shaped rocker apparatus that could be especially soothing for children with autism

• Expression Swings, including molded seats that are positioned to allow adults/helpers and younger users to swing while facing each other

“The city is aware that the one existing ADA playground — located in our Garfield Park — is often difficult to reach (or) access by families because of the popularity and heavy seasonal use of the park,” said Bruckman, noting that the Garfield pool is more than 700 feet away from the playground and up a hill. “Adding a new, universal-access playground at our Civic Center campus will complement existing programs and amenities that we already provide there.”

The timeline for construction is dependent on funding, but city officials hope to include the playground in the budget next year.

The NatureWorks program is county-specific, so the city is competing against others in Lake County for the grant. More funding sources are being sought as well, City Manager Ken Filipiak said.

“Other agencies have expressed an interest already, including the Mentor Rotary, with contributing some additional funding,” he said. “So if this piece falls in place, we would be able to leverage that against some other funds.”

Another possibility is the reallocation of moneys from the Neighborhood Stabilization Community Development Block Grant program.

The city is making a concerted effort to improve access to all its facilities, Bruckman said.

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