Parents of young children, mark your calendars for the beginning of a new chapter at Kade’s Playground in Herculaneum.
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held for a new expansion of the playground at 2 p.m. on Sunday at William C. Haggard Park, 776 Joachim Ave.
The ceremony celebrates the completion of fundraising the $145,000 needed to construct the new play area, which will be designed primarily for infants and toddlers.
Herculaneum Ward 2 Alderman Chris Baker said the area will feature several low-to-the-ground activities and a seating wall surrounding the area.
“The location and seating wall will help separate younger children from the larger play areas while still allowing parents and caregivers to maintain sight of older children using the main playground or Splash Zone,” Baker said.
He said the expansion will be named Stabiae, pronounced “STAH-bee-eye,” after the Roman city of the same name. Baker said the name stays with the existing park theme of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE, which covered Stabiae in deep ash and lapilli, just like nearby Herculaneum and Pompeii. He said wealthy Romans used Stabiae as a quiet luxury resort overlooking the Bay of Naples, which the playground’s splash zone is named after.
Baker said everyone is welcome to attend the groundbreaking ceremony, and children are encouraged to participate in officially kicking off construction by taking the first shovels of dirt from the new expansion area.
“We want as many children as possible to participate in the groundbreaking. A limited number of shovels will be available, so families are encouraged to bring a child-sized shovel,” he said.
Baker said construction on the expansion is expected to begin in late October and be completed around Thanksgiving. Kade’s Playground will remain open during construction. Baker said preliminary groundwork has been completed, and the construction area is fenced off. He said the work should not affect playground operations.
He said this expansion has only been possible because of the generosity of donors, sponsors and volunteers.