Children’s Nature Playscape, slated to open later this summer, is a nature-inspired space that will give kids natural features such as rocks and trees to climb, water, and logs to traverse — right in downtown Kalamazoo. And eventually, it will be one of the largest natural playscapes in an urban core.
Challenges vary from child to child and the sensory difficulties kids may experience in a camp setting include noise, crowds of kids in a shared space, transitions from one activity to another, spoken directions with no visual cues, and the lack of a quiet space to take a break. Moms have worked with Sherman Lake YMCA to help.
How is a portion of the city's ARPA funds being spent in Kalamazoo? A total of 41 agencies representing 54 programs requested more than $6 million in funding. A total of $1 million, the funds available in this round of spending, went to 17 organizations.
“We look forward to the new job opportunities and growth that this investment will bring to our residents and neighbors,” says Lawton Village Manager Lisa Imus.
The nonprofit health clinic serving citizens of Kalamazoo County has implemented a sweeping change in employee compensation that puts Family Health Center on the leading edge of pay practices in health care.
After 20 years of designing luxury, multi-family, residential community projects across the United States, Middle East, and Asia, Rebecca Luong is back home in Vicksburg, where she grew up, and is the new director of design for the $80 million Mill at Vicksburg project.
The new Armintrout-Milbocker Nature Preserve in Allegan, named for the two Allegan families who owned the land for generations, features three miles of Kalamazoo River frontage and 100 upland acres of mostly pine and oak forest, fringed with 40 acres of diverse wetlands.
Outdoor play is especially important now during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the new play area on Bronson Park in Kalamazoo will offer that opportunity. Construction will continue throughout 2022.
There is increasing evidence that exposure to plants and green space, and particularly to gardening, is beneficial to mental health. That's the idea behind a garden primarily for veterans across Southwest Michigan located in Kalamazoo County.
A nature-inspired landscape inviting the kind of unstructured play that children want and need is in the works for downtown Kalamazoo.
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