The Lions Club of Parksville and Rotary Club of Parksville AM are on the brink of hitting their $100,000-fundraising goal for a new splash park.
A pair of donations — $10,000 from Quality Foods, and $30,000 from Mid-Island Co-op made in the last week — means the fundraising effort is nearly done.
The overall cost of the project is estimated at $300,000, though the City of Parksville agreed earlier this year to pay $200,000.
Having launched the campaign in late-May to replace the aging splash park equipment at Parksville Community Park, the clubs had reached $50,000 in August.
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Mid-Island Co-op representatives arrived at the splash park on Tuesday, Oct. 10 to make their $30,000 donation — the largest single donation made to the project, said Mike Garland with the Lions Club.
Barb Peters, chair for the funds allocation committee of the co-op, said of the donation, “It’s for the kids,” adding that Mid-Island Co-op has a location just across the road from the park.
Lions and Rotary AM members expressed their delight with the donation, and the Quality Foods donation made earlier in the week.
“Today we can be very proud of the accomplishment we’ve made,” said John O’Brien with Rotary Club of Parksville AM.
Garland said of nearing the end of the fundraising campaign, “It’s a relief.” But added he won’t count it finished until the last dollar rolls in, which should be quite soon, he said.
Any extra money donated to the project will go to sustaining the splash park going forward, he said.
In the mean time, work has already begun in removing parts of the splash park, said Lions member James Barrand who’s been taking care of the playground at Parksville Community Park (including the splash park) for eight years.
Five pieces of equipment have already been removed, all of which will either be used in the playground or the new splash park.
However, several other pieces of equipment, including the slide and the orca, will be auctioned off publicly as they no longer meet safety standards for public parks.
Asked when the design for the new splash park might be finished, he said he hoped to see it ready by the middle of December.
With fundraising nearly done, both the Lions Club and Rotary AM members suggested that this first partnership between the two clubs might not be the last.
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