July 23, 2008

Grand Opening Of New Universally Accessible Playground and Paths At Potawatomi Park on July 26, 2008

The Community Foundation of St. Joseph County and the South Bend Parks & Recreation Department invite you to come celebrate the completion of a major building project at Potawatomi Park.

In October 2007, the Community Foundation received an Access to Recreation grant from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation which allowed the Community Foundation to collaborate with the Parks Department on the Potawatomi Park “Fun for All” project. This $1,100,000 project makes the city’s most-visited park complex more accessible to our entire community with a new exercise path through the park’s picnic area, a universally accessible new play structure at the park’s center, additional accessible picnic tables and grills, and the establishment of an endowment that will promote universal accessibility in local parks in the future.

The Grand Opening will take place at noon on Saturday, July 26, immediately after the annual Kids Triathlon at Potawatomi Park. Introductory remarks by Head of South Bend Parks and Recreation Phil St. Clair, Community Foundation Vice President Christopher Nanni, Planning Committee member Richard J. Pfeil , and LOGAN CEO Dan Harshman will start the celebration, followed  by a special half-mile walk with LOGAN clients and their friends and families. The rest of the afternoon will be full of free activities, including an arts and crafts show with work done by students throughout the city, a DJ, children’s games (with prizes!), face painting, live music by This End Up, and free hot dogs, chips, and soda. Plan to come out with your family, explore the new pathways and playground, and enjoy the day.

Potawatomi Park, the city’s third oldest park, draws close to 500,000 visitors a year—more than any other park in the county. Its 62-acre site is home to more amenities than any other. They include:
• Potawatomi Zoo, the state’s oldest zoo, named one of the nation’s Top 20 family-friendly zoos
• The Muessel-Ellison and Ella Morris Botanical Conservatories and Potawatomi Greenhouses
• Kids Kingdom, which draws 100,000 children and their families each season
• Potawatomi Pool, used by 10,000 people annually
• The annual Kids Triathlon
• Potawatomi Band Shell, home to the free summer concert series
• Three pavilions with 30 picnic sites—the most active picnic rentals in the city
• Shared green space with neighboring Adams High School

Launched in 2006, Access to Recreation is a three-year initiative to strengthen communities by uniting community foundations, parks and recreation departments at the local, regional and state level, and other recreation organizations in common actions to achieve its mission. Access to Recreation is made possible through a W.K. Kellogg Foundation grant of $15 million to Midwest Community Foundations’ Ventures. The grant includes $5.85 million to be re-granted to the Michigan Recreation and Park Association Foundation and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and $8.15 million to be re-granted to community foundations in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.