“It was just truly tremendous and epic.”
Those are the fitting words Marathon Parks and Recreation Director Paul Davis used to describe the colossal community effort that culminated on Aug. 20 with the reopening of Marathon’s Rotary Park.
The $500,000 project was drawn up by New York State-based company Play By Design, which worked with true “design experts” in the classrooms of Stanley Switlik Elementary School to create the vision for the reimagined playplace.
From there, a massive volunteer effort spearheaded by Marathon Parks and Recreation staff saw hundreds of local volunteers come together for two weeks in late June to bring the vision to life. Their efforts were bolstered by dozens of community organizations and businesses that donated building materials, tools, equipment rentals, food and, most importantly, time to the build.
“This structure has a monetary value, and then there’s the value of all the time and energy that people put into it,” said city manager George Garrett. “We appreciate every bit of that.”
“I helped build this!” one little one excitedly told her mother upon hearing Garrett’s comments. “I helped build this park!”
With two large main structures built from durable composite materials, the park also includes numerous elements that are accessible for small children or handicapped individuals, a climbing apparatus, monkey bars, slides, swings and an in-ground merry-go-round – a massive hit at the opening.
“When things are meant to happen, there’s some things that cannot get in the way of it,” said Davis. “Those of you who volunteered and put in the work, you all know how hard it was. I’ve never worked so hard in my life, to be honest with you, but it’s well worth it.”
Photos by ALEX RICKERT/Keys Weekly
BY THE NUMBERS
21 – Businesses whose employees volunteered time to help build
30 – Local restaurants that served meals to volunteers three times per day
$25,000+ – Total value of donated playground equipment
$30,000+ – Donated construction equipment and materials
60 – Custom bricks sold
640 – Yards of mulch used to fill the playground
1,629 – Pieces of structural plastic lumber used to build the structures
2,500 – Total volunteer hours to build the park
75 – Custom pickets sold
297 – Holes dug by Selevel General Contractors to secure major structural members
