City staff plans to have a new model of the Mercerdale Park playground’s signature kids-sized train rolling alongside fresh play equipment for swinging, sliding and spinning by late summer.

City council voted to accept the playground renovation project proposed design and approve the amended project budget of $843,000 at its May 18 meeting. Additionally, council voted to accept a $20,000 donation from the Mercer Island Preschool Association (MIPA) to go toward the project.

The city shuttered the 5,000-square-foot play area in January because the play equipment reached the end of its useful life after 19 years, in addition to safety concerns and persistent standing water from clogged drainage by decomposing wood chips, according to a previous Reporter story.

City crews removed the equipment, except the swings, on May 8. New equipment, drainage and a play surface are on the renovation docket, and the city council included funding for the playground replacement in its 2021-22 Biennial Budget.

City staff’s appropriation request was in the amount of $333,000, which flanks the MIPA donation and the project’s current budget of $490,000 to reach the total project cost.

Jason Kintner, Public Works chief of operations, noted that park impact fees may be used to fund a portion of the project, and staff recommended that city council authorize the maximum amount of eligible fees for funding. Council voted to move forward with that aspect of the funding, along with authorizing to draw the remaining project funds from the available fund balance in the Capital Improvement Fund.

Drainage work is included in the project budget along with removal of the wood structures and concrete wall.

“The concrete wall that actually divides the playground currently will be removed as part of the scope of work that actually allows us a larger footprint within that existing outside perimeter structure to get more play features included,” Kintner said.

As for the playground features to accompany the train and its track in the recommended design, the fully accessible main structure will reach five feet in platform height to go along with five platforms with an accessible ramp, an approximately eight-foot-high climbable cone spinner, a rock-colored climbing structure, slides, swings, seats and enclosed play spaces. ADA-accessible slide activities are included in the design.

On the color front in the oval playground layout, Kintner noted: “I think one of the other important elements that we heard from the community and through our public engagement process was that the community preferred a more natural tone or color scheme with the playground itself with some slight pops of color along the way.”

There will be a mixed surfacing plan with both synthetic playground grass and pour-in-place rubber, both of which City Capital Projects Manager Paul West said are safe and won’t present any health issues for users.

For more information, visit https://letstalk.mercergov.org/mercerdale-playground