Rudd splash pad nearly ready to open

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

There will soon be a new way to beat the summer heat in Rudd as the Imagination Splash Station is nearly ready to offer the community a wet place to play.

“It’s really close,” said committee member Casey Wood, who is hopeful that the new splash pad will be ready to go as early as next week.

But while the water may start running soon, there’s still plenty of work left to do on the project. The volunteer crew is waiting to install new playground equipment, which is expected to arrive near the end of the month.

“Once the playground is delivered, we will have a workday to put up both the 2-5 age play set together and the 5 & up play set together,” said Wood. “When those are secure into the cement sub-base, then we will call in our pour-on rubber cement company, who will then come and pour the rubber.”

Wood says that if everything goes as scheduled, it will take a couple weeks to finish up work once the playground is delivered, making it ready to go in mid-to-late August. As work in the area continues, Wood is asking that kids enjoying the splash pad be mindful of the workers and their equipment, along with the new grass around the splash pad as it needs time to settle in.

In the meantime, Rudd volunteers are also working on building a shelter attachment for the playground. A grand opening is being planned for next spring once every stage of the project has been finished.

Coming in at around $250,000, the committee has gotten a lot of bang out of its buck for a relatively large project. Donations are still being accepted and a rummage sale fundraiser is scheduled for Sept. 22-23 to raise money for cement sealer to increase the splash pad’s longevity.

Breaking ground on May 24, the development of the splash pad has been a big project for the committee, volunteers and contractors involved. From Tyler Scheer offering his electrical expertise to Mick Gage going above and beyond to haul dirt and level off slopes, Wood said the project wouldn’t be close to finished if not for the exceptional effort put in by the community.

“We’re ready for the finish line,” Wood said. “We couldn’t do it without everyone’s help and time.”