One of the most popular spots in Aspinwall is getting a makeover this fall.
Council on Sept. 9 voted to replace the spray fountain at the playground along Field Avenue.
“It is a long time coming,” Aspinwall Councilmember Jeff Harris said.
“It was once, initially a wading pool in the late 1980s and subsequently revised multiple times over the years into a spray fountain.”
The project, which includes additional work at the site, is expected to cost is $73,721.
Manager Melissa Lang-O’Malley said that more than half of the cost will be covered by grant money.
The borough was awarded a $47,000 Community Development Block Grant through the Allegheny Valley North Council of Governments.
The balance, about $26,000, was included in the 2020 parks budget, O’Malley said.
Construction should start in early October. The playground will be closed during the work.
Children who frequent the park will likely be thrilled to see what’s coming.
The new water feature will include two mushroom-like sprinklers that sit on a concrete slab with kid-friendly cushioning.
“This will vastly improve the safety and usability of the fountain for kids to cool off during the hot days of summer,” Harris said.
At the same time, crews will be working to improve the current hillside slide and to remediate runoff that happens during heavy rain.
Harris said he’s appreciative of the support from the grant program, which enabled the project to get underway.
Borough officials in recent years have had to remind parents to monitor their children at the current spray fountain. Some were stuffing and clogging it with mulch, they said.
