Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parks And Recreation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Neighborhood groups, Habitat present plan and funding to build Walnut playground; ask city to accept donated land
Summary
Iowa Heartland Habitat, neighborhood leaders and Rettland Kiper presented a $317,000 concept for a Walnut Neighborhood playground built on five lots owned by Habitat; $167,000 is secured, about $140,000 pending, and presenters requested a formal city agreement to accept donated land after project completion.
Ally Parrish, executive director of Iowa Heartland Habitat for Humanity, joined neighborhood leaders and Rettland Kiper landscape architects on April 6 to present plans for a new playground in the Walnut neighborhood and to ask the city to formalize acceptance of donated land once the project is complete.
Parrish said the neighborhood historically had a playground near Immanuel Lutheran School until the property was sold to CVS in 2012. After resident surveys and alignment meetings beginning in 2022, a Park Action Team of neighbors, Habitat, the nonprofit Link and city staff developed a concept sited on five vacant lots Habitat acquired over time.
Samantha Price of Rettland Kiper described the concept: a central sidewalk with youth art graphics, a shelter, nature-based play features chosen with resident input, rubber safety surfacing, privacy and ornamental fencing, and low-maintenance lawn areas. The preliminary project budget is just over $317,000. Presenters said $167,000 has been secured and roughly $140,000 is pending in grant requests; Habitat is offering volunteer labor to reduce final costs and residents plan local fundraisers.
Presenters said Iowa Heartland Habitat currently owns the land and intends to donate it to the city after construction is complete. Parrish requested that the council authorize staff to formalize a gift-and-acceptance agreement — city staff advised against beginning major site work until that agreement is in place.
Council members asked about maintenance (staff said routine mowing and trash collection would be included in existing routes and that a small ongoing cost was expected but not yet quantified), fundraising pathways (a Waterloo Community Foundation fund is holding donations), ADA/walkability and site readiness (the site is vacant and accessible by neighborhood sidewalks), and volunteer roles in construction.
No formal city acceptance vote occurred at the work session; council members praised the project as a model public-private partnership and asked staff to bring an acceptance item to a future council meeting with deed transfer contingent on project completion.
