A donation has opened up new realms of possibility for upgrades to an Okotoks playground.

Cedar Grove Park on Lock Crescent is on track to becoming another inclusive playground for Okotoks.

Christa Michailuck, Town of Okotoks Parks Manager, says they've received an in-kind donation for a rubber poured-in-place safety surface for the park, which was already slated for upgrades to playground equipment this year.

She says the donation from GPI Outdoor Designs, Inc. has about a $65,000 value which comes in addition to the $60,000 already approved by the Town.

"In a perfect world, all playgrounds when they're built would factor in inclusive design as money and resources permit," Michailuck says. "So, it's just a fantastic opportunity to be able to do this in another playground in Okotoks in the same year."

The donation announcement was made during an open house hosted by the town last week to gather feedback from residents on upgrades to Cedar Grove Park. Cedar Grove Park will be another inclusive playground for Okotoks, with the other slated for development at Riverside Park across from Seaman Stadium.

Michailuck says the two projects will likely be combined into one for the tender process in order to boost purchasing power for playground equipment.

According to the town's inclusive playground report, features of inclusive playgrounds can include accessible entrances, features such as sensory and sound panels and equipment that promotes play for children of all ages and abilities.

Michailuck says that the rubber surface is an accessible feature in itself, allowing for the movement of strollers and wheelchairs, in comparison to the commonly-used pea gravel that she says is designed to sink in order to provide 'safety impact attenuation.' She says the scope of the Cedar Grove Park project initially did not include a poured-in-place rubber surface due to the high cost of that feature.

"To have this donation will essentially allow Cedar Grove Park to also be another inclusive playground in Okotoks," Michailuck explains, "We'll be looking at that in our equipment design selection to meet the residents' wishes from the open house, and also to look at what types of equipment could also be inclusive to both meet the priorities of the local area residents and public who turned out to the open house as well as add some inclusive components so that children of all abilities can play together in that space."

Construction on both inclusive playgrounds is expected to take place over the summer.

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