For community Spray Park
Community Places initiative
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation and the City of St. Johns today announced a new crowdfunding campaign through Michigan-based crowdfunding platform Patronicity. The campaign will support the development of a water spray park at St. Johns’ City Park.
If the Water Spray Park project attains its crowdfunding goal of $30,000 by July 2, MEDC will provide a $30,000 matching grant. For project details and to donate, please visit: https://www.patronicity.com/project/st_johns_community_spray_park#/.
“The Spray Park at St. Johns’ City Park will not only give the community a fun, unique attraction found nowhere else in the county, but more importantly a free space to gather and interact” said MEDC Community Development Director Katharine Czarnecki.
St. Johns’ City Park has a history of being a community gathering hotspot. The park hosted a variety of recreational programs and special events for kids, adults, and families. The park’s former focal point was the Veteran’s Memorial Pool. Unfortunately, in 2009 the pool closed. With this project, the City of St. Johns intends to utilize this abandoned pool and bring back a community destination.
“This is a project that will attract people from all over the county and we are glad to have built it here in St. Johns,” said Mayor of St. Johns Dana Beaman. “We would like to thank all the supporters of this community project. From the people that cheered for the project with the Readers Digest Contest to the many businesses and residents throughout St. Johns and Clinton County that have donated monetarily, in-kind or of their time. We would also like to thank MEDC and Patronicity for providing us with a means to raise additional money to complete this project.”
The completed Spray Park will feature 3,500 square feet of water related fixtures, jets, and activities. As of today, the Spray Park is almost ready to open. Of the community’s $350,000 goal they have raised $250,000. With this campaign, the city hopes to raise the remaining amount and finally bring a dream of the community’s to life.
“Sometimes we create places we love by building on the assets that already exist in a community,” said Dan Gilmartin, CEO and Executive Director of the Michigan Municipal League. “St. Johns’ City Park has been a long-time destination for the community and the addition of the spray park will continue to make it a focal point for years to come. Those who contribute to this effort can be proud to love this park well into the future.”
Public Spaces Community Places is a collaborative effort of the MEDC, the Michigan Municipal League, and Patronicity where local residents can use crowdfunding to be part of the development of strategic projects in their communities and be backed with a matching grant from MEDC. Communities, non-profits and other business entities can apply at https://patronicity.com/puremichigan.
Pure Michigan is a brand representing business, talent and tourism initiatives across Michigan. These efforts are driven by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, which serves as the state’s marketing arm and lead advocate for business growth, jobs and opportunity with a focus on helping grow Michigan’s economy.
For more on the MEDC and its initiatives, visit michiganbusiness.org. For Michigan travel news, updates and information, visit michigan.org. Michigan residents interested in seeking employment with any of Michigan’s growing companies should check mitalent.org, where more than 93,000 jobs are currently available in a variety of industries.
History of the City Park
The City Park has always been a destination for kids, adults and families looking to participate in recreational programs and special events. The park hosts many events year round, from pickup ball games to reunions, concerts and festivals. People come to the City Park to have fun and meet friends. From 1950 until its closing in 2009, the Veteran’s Memorial Pool was a focal point of the park. The pool was built by local veterans to give kids and families a safe place to swim and have fun.
The City’s decision to close the outdoor pool in the spring of 2009, after nearly sixty years of service, was not made without a lot of discussion and planning. We knew that we would be losing a valuable asset in the community but we had the vision of putting a spray park in its place. Since closing the pool, the City has been working to replace it with a spray park.
This spray park will be the first one of its type in Clinton County and will be accessible for people of all abilities to enjoy free of charge. The spray park is being built on the same premise that the veterans had when the pool was built, which is to provide a safe and fun place for kids and families to play.
The total square footage of the spray park project is 11,191.