Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, August 18, 1994 TAG: 9409120016
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: N-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By KAREN DAVIS SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES &WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The renovations are necessary to comply with new state safety standards that had to be met by July 1, said Sandra Carroll, the school's executive director.
Phase One began in the spring, when the ground was graded and readied for cushioning surfaces that had to be placed underneath and around all playground equipment to minimize injuries from falls.
More than three trailer-truck loads of double-ground fine redwood mulch went into the new cushioning surfaces. To comply with the new safety codes, the mulch is nine inches deep under all swing sets and jungle gyms.
Carroll said this kind of mulch ``has less splintering, doesn't disintegrate as quickly and is less irritating to the children's skin'' than other substances that might have been used.
The school, a United Way agency that offers year-round day care to children ages 6 weeks to 12 years, spent about three years raising money for the project, Carroll said.
The cost of the renovations initially was estimated at $21,000, mostly for labor, she said. Approximately $17,000 was raised through individual donations and by the Greenvale School Auxiliary's annual fund-raising bridge parties.
The Rotary Club of the Roanoke Valley donated manpower and grading equipment that otherwise would have been provided by a contractor. Fifteen to 20 members turned out on five 12-hour workdays between April and mid-July to bulldoze and grade the land, shovel mulch, install landscaping timbers around the playground equipment and replace old timbers in the playground steps.
``With the Rotary Club's help, we were able to complete these renovations at just under $7,000,'' Carroll said.
Rigid swing seats had to be replaced with flexible ones. Hooks and eyes and nuts and bolts had to be replaced with ones having no rough edges or sharp points that could snag or pinch a child's skin. Swing units had to be set a certain distance apart. The new regulations also require that cement footings and ground supports be placed underground and covered with cushioning material.
Parents and volunteers replaced the necessary parts and repainted the equipment. Volunteers also graded and prepared a basketball court for paving.
In addition, the playgrounds were made accessible to the handicapped.
The final phase involves some more grading and seeding. The grounds work will be done by Rotary Club members, Carroll said, between Aug. 15 and Sept. 15, during a preferred seeding and planting season.
Some new equipment, not figured into the $7,000 renovation cost, also will be added as part of Phase Three. It will include tire swings, new climbing structures and an outside amphitheater for preschoolers, Carroll said.
``We removed our older jungle gyms because they could not be brought up to the new safety standards, which require the bars to be a certain distance apart to prevent children's heads from getting stuck," she said.
The playground renovations were completed in time to be celebrated along with the the school's 60th anniversary. Greenvale was founded in 1934 by Bertie Breeden Clinevell. The school recently changed its name from Greenvale Nursery School to Greenvale School to more accurately reflect its diverse educational programs.
``For awhile, we are still using the name with Nursery in parentheses so that people will not be confused,'' Carroll said.
The school serves 270 children with a staff of 57. Parents pay for child care according to their ability. The sliding-scale fees account for only a portion of the school's operating budget, with additional funds coming from the United Way of the Roanoke Valley, the auxiliary's fund-raising projects and private contributions.
Greenvale's three playgrounds are separated on the school's 31/2 acres to accommodate different ages.
by CNB