Parks and Recreation officials hope to install some upgrades at a Morehead playground soon. The city has applied for multiple grants to fund replacing wood mulch at the playground in city park with a crumb rubber surface. Officials said the new material will solve several problems associated with wood mulch.
Matt Hamilton, Director of Parks and Recreation with the city of Morehead, said wood mulch chips tend to wash away in the rain, causing the need to replace them regularly. With the new crumb rubber, that won’t be an issue anymore.
“Weather should not be a factor anymore. There should not be any puddles, any mud, any playground chips, and it’s 100% ADA compliant. That’s the biggest factor in this,” said Hamilton.
Hamilton said the upgrade will make parks safer for kids and help protect the environment from flooding and runoff. He said the crumb rubber is not rubber mulch and is instead more solid.
“If you can imagine almost a rubber turf surface, is what it is. So, we have applied for several grants for that. We’ve applied locally with a Walmart-based grant, we’ve applied through the state, and we’ve applied for a land and water conservation grant. So, hopefully, we’ll be getting good news soon,” said Hamilton.
Hamilton said the city has applied for several grants in hopes of securing funding for the project, but nothing has been finalized and they are not currently sure what the final price tag will be.