MOUNT DORA BUZZ
  • Home
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • Business & Real Estate
    • Outdoor Life
    • Government & Education
    • Real Estate Buzz
    • Kindness Matters
    • Health & Wellness
    • Profiles
    • Newsworthy
    • What's Hot...
    • Who Knew?
  • Calendar
  • Festivals & Events
    • Holiday Event Guide
    • Annual Festivals
    • Monthly Events
  • The Best of....
    • Best of Mount Dora
    • Best of Eustis
    • Best of Tavares
    • Best of Mount Dora Take-out
  • Things to Do
  • Dining
  • Live Music
  • Lodging
  • Photos
    • Doors of Mount Dora
    • City Scenes
    • Views from Above
    • Palm Island Boardwalk
    • July 4th Americana
    • Vintage Photos
    • Donnelly House
    • Sydonie Mansion
    • The Howey Mansion
  • History
  • Mobile App
  • COVID-19 Resources
  • Contact
    • News Desk
    • Advertising Inquiries
    • Writing Services & Content Marketing
    • Design Services
    • Submit Pic of the Day
  • Subscribe

Outdoor Life

MOUNT DORA'S ICONIC PLAY FORT PERMANENTLY CLOSES THIS FRIDAY

9/19/2018

5 Comments

 
PictureABOVE: The wooden castle fort stood for almost three decades.
OCT. 25 UDPATE: Construction is underway and completion is expected in early to mid November, according to the subcontractor.
 
There will no doubt be tears.  The sprawling wooden beacon beloved by children and parents of Mount Dora for almost three decades will soon disappear.    The aging play fort at Gilbert Park, a treasure trove of childhood memories for local families, will be permanently closed to the public on September 21 in preparation for its demolition on September 24.


After 28 years, the City of Mount Dora is replacing the charming old-school fort with a modern steel and plastic pirate ship for children from ages four to twelve.  According to the City, the average life span of commercial playgrounds is approximately 15 to 20 years and the City’s Parks Department employees noticed the wooden structure was falling increasingly into disrepair causing safety concerns.  The popular fort was built by the Mount Dora Woman’s Club in 1990 with the help of over a thousand volunteers spanning one week. 

In June, the City Council made the decision to replace the structure, prior to the completion of the Parks Master Plan.  The $263,000 price tag of the new playground will be funded by the Parks Impact Fee fund.   

Picture
The durable pirate ship, dubbed the “Intrepid” by the manufacturer, Kompan, is approximately 60 feet long and 20 feet tall.  It features clear lines of sight, two slides, a rope course and a sliding pole, as well as various interactive components on the upper deck and ground level.  The ship's deck is not wheelchair accessible, according to a representative from the Texas-based company. However, the compressed mulch ground cover will allow wheelchair access to the lower portion, according to Lisa McDonald, the city's public  information officer.   However, a report for the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health states wood chips are not recognized as an ADA-compliant playground surface material  due to not meeting the propulsion and turning requirements for mobility devices, such as wheelchairs.   (Scroll down to view a video of the new play ship).

Picture
During the demolition and renovation, the park and facilities will remain open but the playground area will be closed.  The playground will also be fenced off starting September 21, 2018.

A date of completion and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new equipment will be announced in the near future.  

​For more news and events in 
Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. To get the area's top stories in your inbox once a month, sign up for the free monthly issue of Mount Dora Buzz.

Sign Up
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
5 Comments
Penny Cannella link
9/20/2018 10:35:09 am

Disappointed to read the new pirate ship is not handicapped accessible. I trust alternative activities will be available for handicapped children.

Reply
Shella O'Brien
9/20/2018 10:58:00 am

It is sad Penny at the direction this park is going. You'd think the city would want to build something accessible by all children and something that would fit better for the history and surrounding area. A pirate ship just doesn't cut it for lake side living.

Reply
Shella O'Brien
9/20/2018 10:55:47 am

Why a pirate ship when we are a lake & country setting. I have never heard of pirates coming this far inland. Why not build something that matches this area? AND have it handicap accessible! Really?!? Come on Mt Dora step up.

Reply
Lynn Tacher
9/20/2018 03:41:40 pm

Sheila, I spoke at the City Council meeting about this playground not being handicapped accessible. (I had spoken many years ago to a different Council about building the smaller playground there and they supported making it accessible for all children!) This Council rushed to award a contract for the pirate ship! They would not even wait to consider other designs (Kompan does do some great inclusive designs for less money such as the one they did in Charlotte with a Jordan Spieth ). Further, this City Council would not even consider a ground cover that would accommodate children on walkers or wheelchairs. For years, I have seen the joy of children with various disabilities have fun on the smaller playground there. I hope I don’t have to watch children in wheelchairs just sitting and watching others on this pirate ship.

Reply
Frederick Neidhart link
9/21/2018 03:15:04 pm

Why not a water park since its hot as blazes 9months of the year? Every other town has a place in their park for kids to cool down. This town is really slacking when it comes to keeping up with our Golden Triangle neighbors. Parking is a joke. Been here since 1984. Have watched as every waste of money "improvement" has robbed the town of its "Mayberry like" charm. One horrible decision after, another. Oh, well. Been here since "84". Guess I should've gotten used to it by now.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    outdoor life

    Archives

    February 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    October 2019
    August 2019
    April 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    August 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Terms of Use
Copyright Mount Dora Buzz 2021



  • Home
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • Business & Real Estate
    • Outdoor Life
    • Government & Education
    • Real Estate Buzz
    • Kindness Matters
    • Health & Wellness
    • Profiles
    • Newsworthy
    • What's Hot...
    • Who Knew?
  • Calendar
  • Festivals & Events
    • Holiday Event Guide
    • Annual Festivals
    • Monthly Events
  • The Best of....
    • Best of Mount Dora
    • Best of Eustis
    • Best of Tavares
    • Best of Mount Dora Take-out
  • Things to Do
  • Dining
  • Live Music
  • Lodging
  • Photos
    • Doors of Mount Dora
    • City Scenes
    • Views from Above
    • Palm Island Boardwalk
    • July 4th Americana
    • Vintage Photos
    • Donnelly House
    • Sydonie Mansion
    • The Howey Mansion
  • History
  • Mobile App
  • COVID-19 Resources
  • Contact
    • News Desk
    • Advertising Inquiries
    • Writing Services & Content Marketing
    • Design Services
    • Submit Pic of the Day
  • Subscribe