New Palmer Park splash-pad opens Friday
Jun 18, 2009 - 11:07 AM
By Chris Hall
PORT PERRY -- The taps on Scugog's newest waterfront attraction will be turned on Friday when the municipality officially opens its Palmer Park splash-pad.
A special ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. on June 19 to mark the completion, and official opening, of the splash pad.
"From all indications, we're quite pleased with it," said John Sellars, Scugog's director of parks, recreation and culture, on Tuesday. "Overall, the park, new playground equipment and splash pad should be a major attraction in the downtown."
Construction on the $50,000 project first got underway last year but has been delayed due to inclement weather, explained Mr. Sellars. He pointed out that poor weather last fall and this spring, coupled with the necessary temperatures needed to properly install concrete, have wreaked havoc with the Township's original construction schedule.
"It's kind of been ongoing and ongoing, it's been a challenge for us," said the director.
However, Mr. Sellars believes the project will be well worth the wait.
The splash pad, a circular concrete pad about 60 feet in diameter, features a pair of palm trees with cascading waterfalls, a series of rings that will spray children as they run by and large frogs, which squirt water out of their noses. There are also four geysers built into the pad floor.
Details on the timing of the pad have yet to be worked out, but Mr. Sellars imagines the facility will run from about 8 a.m. to 8 or 9 p.m., seven days a week. It will also feature motion sensors, automatically turning on and off as children stop by.
"All the kids have to do is keep running and the features will keep spraying," said Mr. Sellars.
And, he added, the various features will be quick to spray the odd goose that may stroll onto the splash pad, keeping the birds away from Scugog's newest attraction.
The idea behind constructing a splash pad for Palmer Park stems from the somewhat annual summer tradition of the Durham Region health department posting Lake Scugog as unsafe for swimming due to high bacteria counts.
"It's an area where kids like to come to the water and with the beaches being closed on a regular basis, we felt we needed to offer an alternative that is water-related," said Mr. Sellars.
Joining top Township officials at the gathering will be a couple dozen children from Curiosity Children's Day Care and representatives from the Pickering/Port Perry Kinsmen Club.
The service club recently pledged to provide $25,000 to the project over five years. To date, it's raised $13,000 but the club stated it will be able to reach its goal, said Mr. Sellars.
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