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AUSTINTOWN -- Before Christmas break at Leonard Kirtz School, a huge delivery was made.
Multiple pallets of materials and equipment were dropped off for the new all-inclusive school playground. Before the end of this school year, that equipment will be assembled and students will be able to enjoy the new addition.
"We started looking at the playground four years ago, then COVID hit," said Mahoning County Board of Developmental Disabilities Superintendent Bill Whitacre.
The playground, in recent years, included a large fenced-in area with a walking path, a pavilion and a handicap swing set. The hope was to have a better playground that offered more while helping students grow and learn.
Whitacre said the playground has been on the planning board for some time. He said the project required a lot of attention to the needs of the LKS students. Landscape Structures out of Michigan, which helped build the Walnut Grove Playground in Canfield, was brought in to assist in the planning.
He added that some of the equipment can be therapeutic for some without them even knowing it.
LKS Principal Gina Symsek said focus groups were held with the Landscape Structures team and staff members.
"We looked at a wide range of needs," she said. "We tried to meet those needs."
A good example of that is with wheelchair accessibility. Some of the equipment designs allowed for a wheelchair to enter the equipment. It would then be up to the child if he or she wanted to remain in the chair, or transfer out of it. Either way, the equipment could handle it.
Other things such as colors and hands-on equipment will allow students to stimulate their minds while playing.
With the plans in place, the next step was to fund the project. Whitacre said it was estimated to cost approximately $900,000.
As the word got out, individuals began contributing thousands toward it. Local fundraisers took place, such as the kite festival that Brenda Rider hosted at Austintown Township Park with proceeds going toward the LKS playground.
Whitacre said the Aut Mori Grotto members also pitched in to help raise and seek funds for the playground project.
"The Mahoning County commissioners felt it was a worthy project, and they gave us $50,000 from their ARP (American Rescue Plan) funds," Whitacre said.
Roughly $100,000 has been raised through fundraisers and donations, $50,000 from commissioners, and $400,000 has been allocated from the MCBDD.
Symsek said the project should begin around March or April. The actual build will take two to three weeks, and the goal is to have it ready for students this school year.
The pavilion on the playground was removed and the current cement pad will be reworked and turned into a court for volleyball, basketball and other similar sports.
Another piece of the planning involved the age groups at LKS. Symsek said the school has about 65 students ranging in age from 5 to 22. Each age group has its own wing at LKS, and each wing has its own access to the fenced-in playground. It will only require figuring out a schedule so each group can enjoy time outdoors with their own age group.
Speaking of outdoors, Symsek said some students may have sensitivity to the sun due to medications they may be taking. To make a place for those students, large trees in the area were left in place to provide shade.
Once the new playground is completed, the students at LKS will be able to enjoy a playground full of excitement and challenges. It will be a big change from just a swing set.
The school is still accepting donations for the project. Information on making a donation is available at 330-797-2825.