Eckville Fundraising Society is moving steadily ahead on its project to bring a new playground to Eckville Elementary.
The current playground at the school is in need of replacement, with less than five years estimated on its remaining lifespan.
Over the past couple years the Eckville Fundraising Society has held a number of events to raise money for a new playground.
Recently, the group picked a design for their “dream playground.”
With that in place, the group has a tangible goal, but they are still a long way off from achieving it.
Tiphany Eliuk, with the society, said the playground design they have chosen will cost roughly $400,000. To date they have raised about $90,000.
“It isn’t set in stone, there is still wiggle room in what we will see in the final product,” Eliuk said.
In deciding what design to go with, the Eckville Fundraising Society carefully considered what students and residents wanted to see.
A while back surveys were sent home to students, and society members met with teachers at the school to find out what they would like to see.
“Grounders is huge at the school… We went with a design that has a lot of circuits where you don’t have to touch the ground to accommodate that,” Eliuk said.
Along with playground games, Eliuk said the society wanted the playground to be used for school purposes as well, which is why consideration into what the teachers would like to see was given.
Many students said they would like to see more swings on the playground, and the society has incorporated that wish and added large disk swings so many kids can play at once.
With time ticking away for the current playground, Eliuk is hopeful the new one will be in place within the next three years.
Eckville Fundraising Society is now in a position where they will begin to apply for major grants. Large fundraising events are being looked at as well, Eliuk says the group is looking to hold another event around Christmas.
Recently, Eckville Fundraising Society appealed to Eckville Council to financially support the project.
Council is considering the appeal and will announce at a later date their decision.