Leslie, Parks Department staff, told the Abilene Parks and Recreation Board that Fort Imagination was burned and that the city intends to replace the playground, but a timeline and funding plan are not yet finalized.

The replacement will be funded through the park’s insurance because, Leslie said, “This was an insured playground and the cost to replace it is above our deductible. So we're going through that process.” She added the city will “try to adhere as close as we can to what was there before.”

Leslie said Abilene Environmental Landfill assisted with cleanup by taking debris at no charge. “We were able to dispose of all the debris from this, at no charge,” she said.

Board members asked about the arson investigation and possible leads. When asked, “Have they had any good leads on the arsons?” one board member was told, “If they have, they haven't told me,” and later staff said they “had some leads, but whether they're good leads, I don't know.”

On rebuilding, city staff said fundraising is the likely path because the original playground was privately funded and built with community support. Leslie said, “Most likely, it's going to be fundraising,” and clarified that the parks board is not typically asked to undertake formal fundraising: “We typically have never asked parks board to do fundraising. Now privately, if you chose to give to something, that is up to you. We do not ask parks board to fundraise on behalf of the city.”

No construction schedule or cost estimate beyond the insurance-deductible threshold was provided at the meeting. Board members and staff said they are continuing insurance and investigatory steps that must be completed before a replacement timeline is set.

A copy of the parks update, cleanup assistance from Abilene Environmental Landfill, and staff comments about insurance and fundraising were presented to the board during the parks projects update.