City of Peoria issued the following announcement on July 19.
The public is invited to participate in a volunteer day for Peoria GreenSplash, located at the Northwest corner of the intersection of S. Griswold St. and S. Friedan St., Peoria, IL 61605, on Friday, July 27 from 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. The new splash park and educational area was made possible through a $150,000 Building Better Communities grant from the American Water Charitable Foundation and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).
Volunteers will have the opportunity to enhance the park by planting native plants. Volunteers are asked to prepare for the event by bringing sunblock, a hat, reusable water bottle, garden gloves and trowels. There will be a limited amount of extra gloves and trowels on hand at the event. Illinois American Water will provide drinking water.
“Providing native flowers is just one of the ways education can play a factor in this educational and recreational feature”, said City of Peoria Public Works Director Scott Reeise. “We are happy to provide another opportunity for green infrastructure education in a public project.” Peoria GreenSplash will feature educational signage detailing the benefits of native plants and clean water throughout the site.
The splash park is the result of a collaboration between the American Water Charitable Foundation, NRPA, the City of Peoria, Illinois American Water and the Peoria Housing Authority. The splash park is currently being constructed on land donated by the PHA, alongside of the Harrison Homes redevelopment. The City of Peoria applied for and received the grant in 2017.
“Providing a space for the community to be hands on and learn about the environment- especially green infrastructure- is a valuable part of this project,” said Laura Martin, president of the American Water Charitable Foundation. “Peoria Greensplash benefits the children and families in this community while encouraging the continued viability and protection of our water resources.”
Community parks like Peoria GreenSplash are vital for connecting children to nature. Nature-based play areas foster an appreciation for environmental stewardship, while providing opportunities for physical activity.
In Peoria, community members will benefit by playing in clean water and learning about native plants, the natural water cycle, and environmental stewardship. The new park is scheduled to open later this summer.
Illinois American Water’s skilled union employees contributed to the project by installing water service for the splash park. Roger Goodson, senior operations manager for Illinois American Water said, “Water is a key ingredient to summertime fun. Our employees were honored to provide their trade skills for this project and to leave a lasting, personal contribution in a community they not only work, but live. We encourage residents to do the same by participating in the volunteer day.”
For information about the Building Better Communities program, visit https://amwater.com/corp/customers-and-communities/american-water-charitable-foundation/signature-program.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up