Dragon Park will be seeing upgrades in September.
LAURINBURG — Later this year, one of Scotland County’s favorite playgrounds will be revamped to be more inclusive and accessible. Scotland Yard, more commonly called Dragon Park, will be demolished and rebuilt in September 2023.
While many things about the beloved park will remain the same, there are some major changes coming. The biggest will be the park’s focus on accessibility for all the county’s children.
“Right now, the park’s surface areas are covered in mulch and that can be hard to navigate in a wheelchair,” said Parks and Rec Director Bryan Graham. “The new build will have a rubber surface that will make it much easier for a wheelchair to traverse.”
The park already has some accessible swings and aims to add more accessible equipment during the rebuild. Also, instead of wood, the new park will be built from recycled plastic timbers which require less upkeep.
Just as it was the first time the park was built, the rebuild will be a community effort. Scotland County Commissioners did their part by approving funding from the county.
“We are excited and thankful for the opportunity to provide a playground for children of all abilities here in Scotland County,” Graham said.
Grants from the non-profit Parks and Rec foundation will help to fill in any funding gaps. The total price tag for the park is estimated at $480,000.
The Parks and Rec advisory board has formed two subcommittees to encourage community involvement. One group will oversee volunteer recruitment.
“We are going to need hundreds of volunteers to help us make this happen. We need people with building experience, but there will be many other ways for people to help. We’ll need people to serve lunch, hand out tools, or maybe even provide childcare for fellow volunteers,” Graham explained.
The other group will handle fundraising. Any extra funds raised will go towards things like upgrading the grills at the park and building more picnic shelters.
Demolition and construction will take place over one week in September this year. Current playground equipment may be sold or even raffled off. Even with all the changes forthcoming, one thing will definitely remain the same.
“The park will still have a dragon,” Graham said.
To volunteer or make a donation, call the Scotland County Parks and Rec office at 910-277-2585.