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Community Corner

Angie's Playground Moving Forward

Florissant City Council has approved the development of Manion Park.

On Jan. 24, Florissant City Council approved Bill 8701, which will allow Accessible Play Inc. to move forward with its plans to build "Angie's Playground" at Manion Park.

"I think it's a great project," said Ward 5 City Councilman Keith Schildroth. "It's kind of an underused park."

Schildroth also said that the residents who live near the park seem to be supportive of the plans.

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While the January decision of the city council was a major step for Accessible Play, the board of directors and team of volunteers behind the organization have been working on this project for a few years.

The major inspiration for Angie's Playground came from Zachary's Playground, which is an accessible playground located in Lake Saint Louis. In November 2007, Accessible Play President Gary Behlmann visited that playground and began assembling a team of people to bring a similar project to Florissant.

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Behlmann's main inspiration for the project is his late daughter Angie who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair for most of her life.

"The unaccessability of things was frustrating," Behlmann said. "Trying to enjoy things as a family was difficult at times. Steps were always a hindrance to getting places."

Behlmann and his wife also have an older daughter. He said he and his wife often had to split up or stay home, so both girls could take part in activities that they enjoyed. The main reason why Behlmann thinks the whole idea of an accessible playground would be good for Florissant is because it would allow all children to interact.

"These playgrounds are for every child," Behlmann said. "We want children of all abilities to be able to play together, to be able to have fun together."

Now that the city council has approved the bill to move forward, Accessible Play is in the midst of two processes, trying to raise money and attempting to get resources together to start construction on the playground.

"I didn't imagine the amount of work it's been taking, especially in the last six months, but it seems like we've been making progress," Behlmann said.

Behlmann said they're working with contractor Millstone Bangert Inc. and the St. Louis Labor Council to move forward with plans, while a team of grant writers is trying to track down the money necessary to build the playground, which is estimated at $1.5 million.

The group plans to break ground this summer, so it has a few months to wait for grants to come through and finalize plans for the playground.

Pamela Weakley-Lee, the secretary and treasurer for Accessible Play, has planned two upcoming events to help raise money for the playground. The first is a "School Daze" Trivia Night at the on Saturday, March 26 at 7 p.m. The cost is $120 for a table of eight people.

The next event is "Touch a Truck," which will take place on Saturday, June 4 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the parking lot at Jamestown Mall.

Kids will have the opportunity to check out all kinds of vehicles, including a firetruck, an ambulance, a concrete truck and a helicopter.

More information about Accessible Play Inc. and its plans for Manion Park can be found on its website, accessibleplayinc.org.

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