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BY CAROL ARNETT

The City of Florissant is one step closer to having an all-inclusive playground. The city council passed a resolution providing “support, encouragement, and park land” for the playground.

A group of residents, led by Gary Behlmann, has formed Accessible Play, Inc., to raise money for the playground. The organization is a 5013C organization, which allows contributions to be tax deductible. Behlmann is chairman of the city’s Disability Awareness Commission.

Behlmann said the next step for the group is to sit down with the city and determine the best place for the playground. “It has to be easy to get to and easy to find,” Behlmann said. The group will also need to raise the funds needed for the playground, and Behlmann said he hopes that the city will be able to help by providing some funding.

Behlmann said he was inspired by Zachary’s Playground in Hawk Ridge Park in Lake St. Louis. “The first time I saw it, I was blown away,” he said. He said it was a “destination playground,” and people come from over 20 miles away to bring their children there. It attracts up to 250 people at a time, Behlmann said. Zachary’s Playground was made possible after a couple whose son has special needs saw a similar playground on a trip. They were inspired to raise money and work with Lake St. Louis to build Zachary’s Playground.

The playground is designed so that children with a variety of special needs can use it. There are ramps for children in wheelchairs or who have mobility issues. There are areas for children with sight or hearing impairments, and there are activities for children with autism and other issues.

“Also,” Behlmann said, “parents and grandparents with mobility issues can access it to play with their children.” In a video produced for Zachary’s Playground, a father with an artificial leg praises the playground as a place he can go with his children, saying that the ground surface used at the playground is much easier for him than the mulch typically used at playgrounds.

Behlmann said the playground in Florissant could cost as much as $1 million. The smooth, rubberized ground surface required is very expensive, Behlmann said, but necessary. In addition to the playground Accessible Play would like to see a pavilion, and accessible restrooms nearby, including a family restroom.

“This could really be a gathering space for families,” Behlmann said.

The Florissant City Council Monday passed a bill prohibiting left turns from eastbound Dunn Road at Santa Cruz and right turns from southbound New Florissant Road at Claire Drive.

Residents of the area asked the city to enact the turn restrictions to prevent motorists from cutting through the neighborhood. At a previous meeting, several residents told the council that drivers cut through the neighborhood during rush hour to avoid the intersection of New Florissant and Dunn Roads.

Often, the residents said, these drivers are traveling over the speed limit. Cutting through the neighborhood will not be possible with the restricted turns.

In other matter, the council held a first reading on a bill authorizing the mayor to enter into an agreement with Billy Casper, BCG for the management of the Golf Club of Florissant.

o Held a first reading on a bill authorizing the mayor to enter into an exclusive license agreement with Meridian Waste Services for solid waste collection services for residents of the city.

o Passed a motion to cancel the second December council meeting due to the Christmas holiday.

o Passed the 20009 city budget after some discussion

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