Next to new play equipment at a reimagined schoolyard in South Scranton, students sang about what made the project happen.
“Cooperation is making us better…
Cooperation, we make a great team.”
The people who cooperated to make the project a reality — from students who designed the space to nonprofit organizations and city leaders who found funding — gathered on Friday at John F. Kennedy Elementary School.
“When you're in this space, you can realize benefits for physical wellbeing, for mental wellbeing, for education, to find shade in a hot day as these trees mature,” said Owen Franklin, vice president and managing director of field programs for Trust for Public Land.
The national organization, whose goal is creating more green space in urban areas, worked with local partner Valley In Motion. The city allocated $500,000 in federal COVID funds for schoolyard transformations, which allowed Trust for Public Land to leverage other grants. The organization hopes to break ground on projects at Whittier and Willard elementary schools within the next year.
The space at Kennedy will be open to the public when school is not in session. Playtime must likely wait until next week to give the soft playing surface enough time to cure after a wet spring.
The space at Kennedy, 2200 Prospect Ave., can help connect the community, Franklin said.
“When people are in the same place at the same time, that's when people start to get to know each other, and when people start to get to know each other, they realize they have things in common, and then they put that common ground to better use," he said. "They do more together than they can apart. That is huge.”
Increasing accessibility to parks
About 2,500 city residents live within a 10-minute walk of the schoolyard, which includes new ADA-accessible play equipment with sensory panels and ramps, a running track, basketball court, picnic tables, newly planted trees and garden and an outdoor classroom for students to learn in nature.
Scranton is part of the inaugural group of U.S. cities in a Trust for Public Land program to increase the number of people who live within a 10-minute walk to a park.
“From the beginning steps, just the conversations and fundraising to this finished project, to really see children's imaginations come to life … we talk about things like this, but to actually be part of something like that, it's emotional,” Principal Nora Phillips said. “It truly fills you up with the good that's out there.”
Students who helped lead the design project as third graders visited from South Scranton Intermediate School on Friday. They said they look forward to walking to the playground.
“I’m glad to see the school and the playground,” said Natalie Gonzalez, 11. “We have flowers now. It's really beautiful. It’s really nice.”
Federal grant eliminated by Trump administration
In coming months, the groups will work to secure funding to complete work at Whittier and Willard. They had a $350,000 Thriving Communities grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, but lost it when the Trump administration cut the program, said Gus Fahey, president of Valley in Motion.
Fahey looked at the schoolyard, which will soon be filled with students during the day, and visited by families after school.
“Before now, it was just a concept. Before now, we just showed pictures of the process. And now it doesn't take your imagination anymore. You can come here,” he said. “You can look at what the next generation of kids deserve to have.”
