The Alliance Rec Center is pleased to announce a grant award of $19,060 from the City of Alliance for the ARC AfterSchool Playground Project. The City joins 75 other local residents and businesses who have offered support of this project including First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO) who awarded the ARC $25,000 earlier this month. “We know there’s power in providing children more opportunities to play, and we are proud to partner with our City to build a strong community for our children and families,” shares Mara Andersen, ARC executive director.
The playground, designed by Crouch Recreation for 2-12 year-olds, was voted on by ARC AfterSchool students. Importantly, the playground will be accessible for all community children and families. “Providing children more opportunities to play and interact is a critical component for social, physical, and emotional health,” explained Andersen, “All of which impact academic achievement, which in turn impacts long-term community health and prosperity. We are dedicated to ensuring all children in our community have access.” The Alliance Rec Center expects to install the playground this summer.
The City leveraged ACE funds from the ACE revenue return program. ACE, the Public Alliance for Community Energy, is a natural gas supplier in the Choice Gas Program. Residents who choose ACE as their natural gas supplier not only save money on their monthly gas bills, but a portion is donated back to the communities ACE serves. These funds are then used for community betterment projects like the recent remodeling of the disc golf course at Laing Lake. Alliance City Councilman Earl Jones shared, “The City of Alliance was able to use ACE funds from the ChoiceGas program to pay about one third of the cost of a playground at the Alliance Recreation Center. The playground will provide for children not only in the ARC AfterSchool and summer programs, but also those who live in the housing developments east of Flack Avenue. What a great improvement to Alliance.” Alliance City Finance Director and ACE Board Representative Randy Waggener remarked, “this is an ideal use of ACE return funds as it provides additional recreational opportunities for the youth of Alliance.”
The ARC AfterSchool Playground Project is part of the ARC’s 2021 Make More Possible Annual Giving Campaign. The campaign, set to kick off publicly in April, has already raised $56,800 of the $85,000 goal. The campaign ties together the completion of the ARC AfterSchool Playground Project as well as the financial aid budget benefiting children and families throughout 2021.