NEDERLAND, Texas — Doornbos Park in Nederland is getting new inclusive playground equipment thanks to a partnership between city leaders and a non-profit organization.
"The city approved purchasing a inclusive playground for Doornbos Park, which will be the first inclusive playground we have in our system," Nederland City Manager Chris Duque said.
Members of the Nederland City Council voted Monday to move forward with installing an accessible playground at Doornbos Park.
The city has had the project in the works for years but the global pandemic put it on pause. Gay Ferguson, the city’s former clerk who passed in 2022, was a driving force in the project.
"This is probably the last project that she had her hands on before her unfortunate passing," Duque said.
City leaders are partnering with Adaptive Sports for Kids to make the playground more inclusive. The non-profit organization will give suggestions in terms of design.
The playground will be located behind the tennis courts and will have rubber flooring and sensory items. This project uses COVID-19 funding.
"It will be installed where our sand volleyball courts are at, which is right by the tennis courts,” Nederland City Manager Chris Duque said. “The purchase price was a little over $539,000. This is actually a carryover project from two fiscal years ago, and we are moving forward because of the price we had to use some of our coronavirus money. "
Adaptive Sports for Kids Executive Director Allen Nation believes the changes will benefit every child.
"It allows them to be independent and that's what a lot of these kids want, their own independence," Nation said.
The city is expecting the park construction to be completed by the fall.