Roanoke Park called model for neighborhood involvement

The official first slide on the new Roanoke Park playground.

Neighborhood efforts to restore Roanoke Park should be an example for all neighborhoods in Kansas City, according to Terry Rynard, deputy park department director.

She made her comments Saturday at the dedication of a new playground at the park.

Before the official dedication, volunteers from the four neighborhoods involved in Roanoke Park spread 120 yards of mulch around the new playground equipment.

“This is a model for what we hope to do in community involvement in the parks,” Rynad told the crowd of parents and kids who came to check out the new playground.

Parents are hoping to build another playground in a different part of Roanoke Park and are trying to raise funds for the project.

Renovation of the park began several years ago when local volunteers began clearing out invasive honeysuckle plants. The Roanoke Park Conservancy is now working on a master plan to restore and enhance the park.