Eleven Ariz. communities recognized for play areas

by KTAR.com (September 6th, 2011 @ 2:55pm)

Eleven cities in Arizona have been recognized as Playful City USA communities, making them eligible for grants to improve and build playgrounds to benefit local children.

According to ABC15, the Playful City USA designation was created by KaBOOM, a nonprofit organization dedicated to bettering play areas for children nationwide.

KaBOOM, along with Let’s Play and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, have $15 million available for playground work and the eleven qualifying Arizona cities will receive some of that aid by 2013.

Casa Grand, Chandler, Coolidge, Fountain Hills, Gilbert, Mesa, Oro Valley, Phoenix, Tempe, Tucson and Yuma are the qualified Arizona cities.

Arizona only trailed Florida and California with the number of Playful City USA-designated communities.

Additional Information from Mark Gridley

Fountain Hills resident has long been recognized as one of the best places to raise a family in Phoenix and this is another feather in its hat! Many people unfamiliar with Fountain Hills think of it just another retirement community and snow bird nest but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Not only do we have some great playgrounds for children, we also have fantastic recreation for all ages and most of it is free. We have a great Skate Park, tennis, baseball, basket ball and soccer fields. Fountain Hills is also bicycle friendly with bike paths and trails galore. Dog lovers will adore Desert Vista off lease dog park and walkers will enjoy miles of maintained trails with spectacular views. Bird watchers can relax at the Fountain Park and see a huge variety of our feathered friends. On occasion we’ve even been visited by a pelican blown off course from CA.

So if your thinking about relocating to Arizona, put Fountain Hills on your short list of places to visit.