Celebrating Mount Elgin's Newest Playground

Monday, 7 October 2019 at 08:56

The Hilltop Park Playground Grand Opening

The Hilltop Park Playground is officially open to the community in Mount Elgin. A grand opening was held yesterday, which included a ribbon cutting ceremony and a barbecue.

MOUNT ELGIN - A new playground was unveiled for the community at the Hilltop Park in Mount Elgin over the weekend.

Dignitaries were in attendance, along with members of the Hilltop Park Committee, to be a part of Saturday's grand opening.

Committee member Eryn Cuthbert says they've been working on the project since 2015.

"It means a lot. It brings the community together. A lot of these people are from bigger cities so to come to the small village, it makes them get to know everyone that's here and kind of contribute to the small village they've now become a part of."

It cost $120,000 to complete the project, which included an $80,000 capital grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

Chair of the Hilltop Park Committee, Adam Prouse says they also received $30,000 through capital projects from the Township of South-West Oxford and the committee also raised $10,000.

Prouse says the playground is something all of the kids can enjoy.

"The main goal is just for kids to have fun and as you can see it's a fully accessible playground and that was one of our main driving forces is to make sure it is accessible and stays accessible for many years to come."

Cuthbert adds the park allows youth to create friendships with other children, along with respecting others and the property.

Oxford MPP Ernie Hardeman and Ontario Trillium Foundation Grant Review Team member Peter Fleming were on hand to congratulate the committee prior to the ribbon cutting ceremony. A barbecue was held inside the park afterwards.

The structure is for children ages five to 12 years old and it has three slides, swings and monkey bars. She says it also has an area on the main level for the kids to play on, with a lot of different textiles to stimulate people with different disabilities.

The monkey bars with two rings allows wheelchair users to strengthen their upper body and the platforms on the structure are no more than six inches apart, which means all sides are accessible via transfer station. The climbers also have three different textures, which is beneficial to children with sensory processing disorder and the swing set has an accessible seat for those who have low muscle tone so they can experience the swinging motion.

The park is located near the intersection of Graydon Drive and Peggy Avenue.