Lexington is diving into history with plans for Splash!, a water play zone that will tell the story of Col. Charles Young, the first African American to earn the rank of Colonel in the United States Army. Splash! will be located in Charles Young Park, downtown in the East End neighborhood.
“We are bringing new life to Charles Young Park and Community Center,” Mayor Linda Gorton said. “We have already put in a new playground and resurfaced the basketball court. Town Branch Commons Trail will soon run right by the park and Splash!, making access convenient for nearby neighbors to walk or cycle to the facilities.”
Splash! will be a sizable water play feature, and the first of its kind in downtown Lexington. It has been designed for a wide variety of ages and abilities, with plenty of input from neighbors, including neighborhood children.
“Neighborhood kids are taking part in a project that is changing the face of this neighborhood,” said Jill Wilson, William Wells Brown Community Center Director with Parks and Recreation. “Someday they will proudly look back and say, I did that, I made a difference!”
Councilmember James Brown said, “Splash! will be treasured and enjoyed by the families of the East End because they helped design it. Similar to the new playground in Charles Young Park, every aspect of this water play feature was envisioned and developed by neighborhood residents through community engagement and partnership.”
The water feature is designed to conceptually illustrate the life of Charles Young, while also educating visitors about the rich cultural history of the East End neighborhood and the Park, which opened during the segregation of the 1930s and was the city’s second outdoor public recreation space for African-Americans.
Recently, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded Young with an honorary promotion to Brigadier General. In 2016, the Charles Young Center was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Splash! will also draw upon the Bluegrass landscape, mimicking karst, creeks and streams found in the rural area. Using recirculating water, the water play area will include water bubbling up from stones, crossing water arches, and a constant shallow stream surrounded by stepping stones and artificial turf mounds for play or sitting.
Plans call for the addition of trees to cool off the area and native plantings. And the project includes renovation of the existing restroom building.
The cost of the privately funded project is $1.15 million, including a grant of $900,000 from Blue Grass Community Foundation with support from the following charitable donors and BGCF fund holders: Blue Grass Community Foundation, Community Ventures, J.M. Smucker Co., James and Martha Monroe Charitable Fund, and the Knight Foundation Donor Advised Fund.
“The Community Foundation has a deep, abiding commitment to investing in park and greenspace initiatives that make our community more equitable for everyone,” said Lisa Adkins, president/CEO of Blue Grass Community Foundation. “Creating engaging, safe water play in Lexington’s East End and downtown has been a decade-long priority for BGCF, and we couldn’t be more thrilled with the result of convening, collaborating, and helping fund Splash! at Charles Young Park.”
Splash! also received a grant from the American Water Charitable Foundation’s Building Better Communities Grant, administered by the National Recreation and Park Association, for $250,000. “Kentucky American Water has been a strong supporter of Lexington’s parks for decades because we know that, just like quality water service, parks play a significant role in a community’s quality of life,” said Nick Rowe, president of Kentucky American Water. “With funding provided in part by the American Water Charitable Foundation, Splash! at Charles Young Park will be a wonderful place for people of all ages, backgrounds and physical abilities to enjoy water-based recreation while learning about conservation and environmental stewardship in a safe and sustainable manner.”
