Sept. 18, 2017

Contact: Shawn Speaker, 248-634-8811

Holly Recreation Area community-built playground officially opens to the public at Friday ribbon-cutting

Support from Carter Oosterhouse’s Carter’s Kids foundation, local community organizations brought design to life

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources will host a ribbon-cutting event Friday, Sept. 22, to mark the official opening of the new, community-built playground at Holly Recreation Area in Oakland County. Both the public and media are invited to the event.

Through a partnership between the DNR, Carter’s Kids and local community organizations, three community-built playgrounds were installed this summer as part of the DNR's 2017 Playground Initiatives Project. The Holly project utilized DNR employees and local volunteers from the Friends of Holly Recreation Area and Clark Builders to prepare the site and construct play equipment over the course of two days.

The DNR partnered with Carter’s Kids, a foundation started by HGTV’s Carter Oosterhouse, to provide design and construction services with Sinclair Recreation and assist with coordination of the community-build project. The $130,000 project was supported by a $30,000 donation from the Friends of Holly Recreation Area and funds from the sale of Michigan’s Recreation Passport. Additional technical and administrative support also was provided by mParks, with Jump Island LLC providing lunch to volunteers both work days.

The universally accessible playground features a transfer platform, rubber tile surfacing and a walkway to the playground. The playground is located adjacent to the Heron Lake Beach and offers slides, cargo nets, a balance beam, several climbing elements and a discovery log.

"The playground will provide an additional recreational opportunity at the beach and promote physical exercise and exploration for our younger park visitors," said Shawn Speaker, Holly Recreation Area park supervisor. "A tremendous amount of community involvement went into the project and we want to thank everyone involved. The $30,000 donation that the Friends of Holly gave us early on in the project set the stage for the success of this community-wide project."

"Carter's Kids is extremely excited about our partnership with the Michigan DNR on these three state park playground builds," said Carter Oosterhouse, founder of Carter's Kids. "The playground is located in a beautiful state park and offers an abundance of play features that children will enjoy. We can't thank enough the park staff, Friends of Holly Recreation Area and all of the community partners that made this project possible."

Ribbon-cutting event at Holly Sept. 22

The ribbon-cutting ceremony starts at 1:30 p.m. at 5005 McGinnis Road in Holly, adjacent to the beach. Participants include:

• Carter Oosterhouse.
• DNR officials and staff.
• Representatives of the Friends of Holly Recreation Area.

Additional playground unveilings at Island Lake (Sept. 22), Grand Haven (Oct. 2)

Additional ribbon-cutting events will take place to celebrate two other community-build playground installations that are part of the DNR's 2017 Playground Initiatives Project. Earlier in the morning Sept. 22, a ribbon-cutting will take place at 11:30 a.m. at Island Lake Recreation Area. Next month, a ribbon-cutting is set for Monday, Oct. 2, at 1:30 p.m. at Grand Haven State Park. HGTV’s Carter Oosterhouse and many other community partners will be in attendance at both events. The public and media are welcome.

For information contact Shawn Speaker, Holly Recreation Area park supervisor, at 248-634-8811 or speakers@michigan.gov.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is committed to the conservation, protection, management, use and enjoyment of the state’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. For more information, go to www.michigan.gov/dnr.