Michigan Business Beat | Capital Region Community Foundation Reviews Recent Groundbreaking

Jeffrey Mosher speaks with Laurie Baumer, Executive Vice President, Capital Region Community Foundation, the group which broke ground on the first universally-accessible playground in the region, designed to promote inclusivity and the health and well-being of children of ALL abilities. And because the playground will be fully accessible, parents and grandparents who have physical limitations will be able to enjoy playing with their children and grandchildren. This extraordinary $1.8 million playground-park on the downtown Lansing riverfront will be a destination for families throughout our region and beyond. The Community Foundation’s designers have far exceeded ADA requirements in order to create a completely barrier-free environment where all children and adults, regardless of ability, can play side-by-side throughout the entire park. This project is important because families in our community who have children with special needs have to travel over an hour to find a universally-accessible playground, such as those in Grand Rapids and Commerce Township. The project is led by the Community Foundation, in partnership with the City of Lansing.Major donors include AF Group, CASE Credit Union, Peckham, Sparrow Health System, Mary Free Bed, Michigan Medicine, Auto-Owners Insurance, and Coldwell Banker Hubble Realty. The total raised to date is approximately $1.2 million toward the $1.8 million goal, including matching funds from the Community Foundation. The Community Foundation will match all private funds raised, dollar for dollar.