The Glenwood Springs Kiwanis donated $5,000 for a "tot lot" at the Community Center.

The donation was a response to match a previous $5,000 challenge grant from an anonymous donor.

Terri Miller, board president of the Two Rivers Community Foundation, said that donation has brought the total to almost $12,000 for money to complete play features at the tot lot.

"It's kind of exciting," she said.

Around $50,000 of work on infrastructure was done recently, but the cost of completing play features on top of that was estimated at $25,000. With around $12,000 already obtained, the tot lot still needs about $13,000.

"If we can just keep this in motion until maybe the end of the year, hopefully they can have everything in place by the spring," Miller said.

Kiwanis is also coordinating with the high school's Key Club and the Builder's Club to build some of the features at the tot lot, Miller added.

The tot lot is meant to be interactive, to engage the senses and encourage creativity. It will include a sand lot with a water pool a few inches deep in the center of its 70-by-100 foot core. There's also a slide, birdhouses, gardens and a "butterfly pavilion." The pavilion is designed to be a colorful area that might attract butterflies and stimulate creativity. The center of the lot would be a softer wood-fiber surface, with other areas of turf and concrete.

Plans for the play area include a bouldering area. There would also be additional features including peripheral pathways, an interactive nature display, a slide, timber steps and a jungle gym. The tot lot would connect to the indoor child care area and the "sound garden," where one can find pitched percussion instruments, a xylophone and chimes organized around gardens and a gas fireplace. The tot lot will be open to the general public as a city park.



Post Independent, Glenwood Springs Colorado CO