Just take a moment of silence and hear the children play,” Mayor Glenn Grandis said.
The City of Fountain Valley hosted its ribbon-cutting ceremony to open the brand new Universally Accessible Playground in the Fountain Valley Sports Complex at Mile Square Park.
Designed with support from Unlimited Play, a non-profit organization dedicated to designing and building accessible playgrounds, the new playground aims to provide opportunities for all children to play. The various equipment and amenities of the playground help to meet the social, physical and cognitive abilities of all children.
The playground, shining in bright colors of blue and green, features the staple components and equipment commonly associated with play. Swings, slides, ziplines and the entire complex are decorated in a combination of nature and sports themes. To the side, a shaded seating area is available to visitors.
Support for the project came from various community organizations, including the Fountain Valley Community Foundation, Rotary Club, Kiwanis Club and the Firefighter and Police Officer Associations. Local legislative leaders also helped to secure funding from the project; United States Representative Michelle Steel secured $500,000 from the federal government and State Assemblyman Tri Ta secured $1 million from the state of California.
Local community and government leaders gathered at the playground to deliver remarks and partake in the ceremonial ribbon cutting. Chairman of the FV Advisory Committee for Persons with Disabilities John Borack and Barbara Montz from the FV Community Foundation described the reasons, process and importance for constructing the playground. State Senator Janet Nguyen, Grandis, Steel and Ta recognized the importance of partnership from all levels of government and community members for making the project possible.
“I want to thank everybody who’s come out today and played a part in creating this playground,” Grandis, who has a nonverbal son, said. “FV also stands for fantastic volunteers — that is what our community is all about.”
“This playground is built for parallel play. When kids play together, everyone realizes that they have the same fun from the swings and the zipline,” Community Services Director Rob Frizzelle added. “We don’t recognize differences, but we have love, respect and dignity for each other.”