The City of Kenai will use a $20,000 grant from Marathon Petroleum to buy inclusive playground equipment for Kenai Municipal Park following approval of the purchase by Kenai City Council members on Wednesday. The city applied for and received the funding in 2022.
The equipment to be purchased is GameTime’s “Inclusive Seesaw.”
The equipment can accommodate four children at a time and offers a slower rocking motion to prevent sudden movements, the company’s description of the equipment says. The center of the seesaw is a platform that includes Braille and sensory elements and is placed at a height intended to accommodate children in wheelchairs or children with mobility needs.
Kenai Parks and Recreation Director Tyler Best wrote in an Oct. 12 memo to council members that the seesaw will be installed on the site of a large spruce tree that was killed by spruce bark beetles and removed by the city last summer.
“It was featured in the middle of the playground and looked visually appealing until it died when it became unsightly and unsafe,” Best wrote.
Best told council members Wednesday that the city viewed the inclusive seesaw as one that would be able to serve the most children and complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act while also being affordable given the grant amount. The seesaw, when installed, will be the first at the park and will be the only equipment accessible via a paved path.
“It seemed like this piece of equipment hit the biggest age range and the biggest user group,” he said.
Best said the city hopes to receive the equipment next spring and have it installed by next summer.
Wednesday’s Kenai City Council meeting can be streamed on the city’s YouTube channel.
Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.
