OTR playground gets new lease on life

Angela Merritt flashed wide smiles Thursday as she watched her 6-year-old daughter Aphenatee joyfully playing at the Grant Recreation Area playground.

Merritt, of Over-the-Rhine, said upgrading a tired, underused park that has been a haven for crime and illicit activity is an opportunity for her neighborhood to chart a different course. The park's condition and safety is among her top concerns as Aphenatee regularly visits Wesley Chapel Mission Center's after-school program, which is located across the street from the park.

"'I wanna go play in the park,' " Merritt said, quoting her daughter in the last few weeks as the park was under construction. "I'd tell her, you have to wait 'til it gets done."

Aphenatee and dozens of children and adults got that chance Thursday afternoon when city officials and volunteers celebrated a ceremonial ribbon-cutting and opening of the playground. Remaking Grant Park is a biggest piece of the city's 90-day blitz focusing on code enforcement, blight elimination and crime reduction in Over-the-Rhine north of Liberty Street. The city organized a small parade for children in the neighborhood to walk around the park as Cincinnati Marching Band's Xtreme Percussion Drumline performed.

The more than 43,000-square-foot city-owned park at East McMicken Avenue and Walnut Street now features new playground equipment from Playworld Systems Midstates and landscaping.

RELATED:A new beginning for Grant Park in OTR

Officials closed sections of the park in the last couple months as renovations were completed. Ornamental perimeter fencing around the playground still needs to be installed.

Also present in the park are signs showing the list of donors and volunteers who contributed to the redevelopment. For Over-the-Rhine resident Sandra Jones, it also means it's up to people in the neighborhood to maintain the park and children can play without fear of interactions with drug dealers and users.

The renovation cost about $150,000, said Ethel Cogen, senior community development analyst for the city. About $60,000 of that came from the Ohio Capital Corp. for Housing and Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati.

Over-the-Rhine Community Council President Ryan Messer said the playground renovation reflects signs of the positive things coming to the northern part of the neighborhood.

"I am so proud of all that the community volunteers and corporate donors have accomplished at Grant playground, and in such a short amount of time," said Mayor John Cranley.

Cranley said commitments from residents and the city have helped reduce crime by nearly 50 percent in this area compared to last year. He said blight is down by 10 percent over the same time period.

"It shows the power that a committed group of people can have," he said.

Christian Moerlein Brewing Co. is bringing the sport of fowling to Grant Park on the last Sunday of every month this summer. Fowling is a sport where players stand across from each other like a game of cornhole with a traditional ten-pin set up of bowling pins on top of their boards. The object of the game is throw a football to knock down the pins.

Over-the-Rhine Community Housing will host its block party June 25 in the park.

Starting next month, the Cincinnati Recreation Commission will launch programs and activities for children at the playground.