2012 was a very busy and successful year for Friends of Lucas Park. Downtown St. Louis has a number of wonderful residents who take great pride in their community and have put in a lot of hard work to show it. We will be forever grateful for what you have done to improve our neighborhood. Please take a few minutes to check out our photo year in review. We wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!
Feature Story
Our playground community build project is being featured on the KaBOOM website. Click here for the full story and pictures from the build.
Halloween Party Play Date
Join us Saturday Oct. 27th for our
Halloween Party Play Date
Halloween Party Play Date
Where: Lucas Park Playground
When: 1pm - 4pm
When: 1pm - 4pm
There will be pumpkin decorating, face painting, snacks and of course candy so put on your favorite costume (parents too) and join the fun!
The Downtown Chamber of Commerce will be judging costumes from 1pm-2pm with the winners announced at 2pm. Prizes will be awarded so get creative!
Also Urban Harvest STL will be hosting a pumpkin carving contest during the play date. Pumpkins can be registered between 2pm-3pm and the winner will be announced at 3pm. Stop by the Haunted Harvest Festival at the downtown community garden (1631 Dr. MLK Drive) on Sat. Oct. 20th from 4pm-6pm to pick up a pumpkin. Take it home and carve it then bring it back to Lucas Park on the 27th to enter the contest.
Please RSVP number and age of children attending at LucasParkSTL@gmail.com
Beautification work to begin
Due to the fantastic turnout this past weekend we are ahead of schedule in our park beautification plan and will be prepping the playground perimeter for sod on Saturday Sept. 22 at 9:00am. Please email us at LucasParkStl@gmail.com if you will be there so we can plan accordingly. Hope to see you there!
Posted with BlogsyToday a playground was built
Today will go down in history. In just under 12 hours we built a beautiful playground and completely changed the look of Lucas Park. A huge thanks to all of the downtown residents who came out to help as well as volunteers from US Bank, First Bank, the YMCA, College Bound, SLU Dance Team, the Kingdom House, Left Bank Books, the St. Louis Public Library, Lola and all of those who I may have missed. This would not have been possible without you. We hope you come back again and again to enjoy all of your hard work.
Playground Build Starts Tomorrow
Friends of Lucas Park would like to extend a huge thank you to
all of our volunteers, donors and supporters. You have all contributed
greatly to this renovation and beautification project. Tomorrow, Friday Sept.
7th, we will begin our construction prep work with the delivery of all
materials needed for Saturday's build day. If you are not signed up to
assist in the build please stop by and take part in the children's activities
that will be going on from 8am-4pm in the west end of the park. Click here for details. We also hope that you are able to
join us for our first official play date on Tuesday Sept. 11th from
5:30pm-7:30pm. We will have weekly play dates to follow every Tuesday
evening 5:30pm-7:30pm and Thursday mornings from 10am-12pm.
As most of you know the playground build is just the beginning for Lucas Park. Work on the new irrigation system, fountain repair and plantings will soon follow. Fundraising for these efforts is also underway. The amount that we need to raise in the next month to fully fund these phase 2 improvements is $30,000. We are off to a great start as Emerson has issued a letter offering to match $15,000 in donations, from Downtown stakeholders, dollar for dollar. We are extremely grateful for this and hope that Downtown pitches in and helps us take full advantage of this grant.
As most of you know the playground build is just the beginning for Lucas Park. Work on the new irrigation system, fountain repair and plantings will soon follow. Fundraising for these efforts is also underway. The amount that we need to raise in the next month to fully fund these phase 2 improvements is $30,000. We are off to a great start as Emerson has issued a letter offering to match $15,000 in donations, from Downtown stakeholders, dollar for dollar. We are extremely grateful for this and hope that Downtown pitches in and helps us take full advantage of this grant.
We are also gearing up for our first perennial planting and Halloween party play date.
Click here for more information.
We hope to see you all this weekend. This is a great opportunity to meet those who are making a difference in our neighborhood.
We hope to see you all this weekend. This is a great opportunity to meet those who are making a difference in our neighborhood.
Phase 2 fundraising underway
Now that the necessary funds to construct a new playground in Lucas Park have been raised, Friends of Lucas Parks is launching phase 2 of our fundraising campaign. These funds will be directed towards the improvements inside the rest of Lucas Park including a revamped irrigation system, new grass, extensive landscaping, and other improvements. The cash that we need to raise in the next month to fully fund these phase 2 improvements is $30,000. We are off to a great start as Emerson has issued a letter offering to match $15,000 in donations from Downtown stakeholders dollar for dollar. Therefore, if we can raise $15,000 from Downtown stakeholders, Emerson will donate the remaining $15,000, completing our phase 2 fundraising. You are hereby challenged to help us achieve this match. We appreciate your generosity to date and truly believe that with your help raising these additional funds we will be able to fully achieve the neighborhood’s vision for Lucas Park.
$5,000 donation from St. Louis Composting
Friends of Lucas Park is thrilled to announce that St. Louis Composting
has agreed to donate 100 cubic yards of topsoil and compost to our
efforts. These materials typically cost about $50 per cubic yard, so
this incredible donation is worth $5,000 to our efforts. Jim Fetterman with DTLS Architects (the landscape architects who developed our
site plan on a pro-bono basis) was a crucial partner in securing this
donation. This donation will supply essentially all of the organic soil
materials necessary to support our incredibly extensive landscaping
plans. Thank you St. Louis Composting and DTLS Architects. This is a
huge win for our project. Please consider patronizing these wonderful
partners who regularly invest time and money in rebuilding our community.
Park Clean-up #2
 |
| Lucas Park clean up #2 will be held this Saturday Aug. 18th starting at 8:00am. Our focus this week will be site prep for the new playground. Equipment and water will be provided. Hope to see you there! |
Park Clean-up #1
Today's park clean up was a big success. Thanks to all the volunteers who came out to lend a hand. The existing playground has been scrubbed down and the park has been cleared of all liter. We will be back next week to do more playground site prep work.
Mousing Around
The Mouse Race fundraiser was a huge success! Thanks to all the
volunteers and sponsors who made this night possible. We were able to
raise $6,300 for Friends of Lucas Park!
Mouse Races Tonight
Mouse Races are tonight at Christ Church Cathedral, 1210 Locust St. Doors open at 6:30 pm and races start at 7:00 pm. You can purchase tickets at the door for $20. Tickets include beer from Urban Chestnut Brewing Company, soda and water from Dr Pepper and lots of yummy snacks! Hope to see you there.
Progress in the making
Lucas Park is officially closed for construction.
Look for work to begin later this week.
Fundraising Milestone
Thanks to the Mardi Gras Foundation and their $10,000 donation we have secured funds to purchase the playground equipment!
Lucas Park Volunteer Lead Clean Ups
Join your neighbors on Saturday August 11th and help kick-off our
park renovations. Clean up will start at 8:00 am. Tools will be provided, bring water and sunscreen.
Rain date will be Aug. 12th. If needed there will be another clean up on Aug. 18th to prepare the site for the new playground equipment. Stay tuned for more details. Hope to see you there!
Parents you've been challenged!
An anonymous donor is matching new donations for the next 2 weeks up to
$500. They want all the parents Downtown to make a donation towards the
playground in lieu of paying to build one in their own backyard. This is
a great opportunity to double your contribution to our neighborhood. We are only $2000 and 3 weeks away from ordering the playground equipment. Your children will thank you!
Volunteers Needed
Volunteer to help at our KaBOOM! Playground Community Prep and Build
Days (Sept. 7th and 8th). Build Day activities will include crafts and games for kids and music, raffles and food for all volunteers. Build will go on rain or shine. All volunteers must sign up here. Someone will contact you to coordinate times and tasks.
Thank You!!
Thanks to the Mardi Gras Foundation and their $10,000 donation we have secured funds to purchase the playground equipment!
*************************
A huge thank you to Tom Schlafly for a $1000 donation!
*************************
A huge thank you to Tom Schlafly for a $1000 donation!
*************************
Thank
you very much to Bob Guller and Kellie Hynes for your $500 donation to Friends
of Lucas Park in support of the park redevelopment.
*************************
A
very special thank you to Dan O'Brien for a $500 donation. Your support is
truly appreciated.
*************************
A
huge thank you to Natalie Semchyshyn and Amos Harris for your generous donation
and fantastic idea of a challenge matching donation. With their help we raised
$1000 in less than 3 days!
*************************
Our
first $1,000 donation was made by Pinnacle Contracting. Thank you so much
for your support!
Matching Donation
We have been challenged! If we can raise $250 in the next week a donor
will match with an extra $250 on top of their already committed $500.
Let's do this Downtown!
FAQ
Please visit our updated FAQ section. Many of these topics were brought up at Tuesday's Town Hall meeting.
Mouse Race Information
Click here or on the link on the right hand side of the page for information on our Mouse Race Fundraiser.
Looking for a tax deduction?
Friends of Lucas Park received notice from the IRS that we have official 501(c)(3) tax exempt status! All previous and future donations are tax deductible. Haven't given yet, make your donation today!
*All receipts will be issued at the end of this tax year*
Town Hall Meeting
Please come to the Town Hall Meeting Tuesday June 26th from 6:30-8:30 at Christ Church Cathedral. Let your voice be heard and help make Downtown and Lucas Park a safer place.
Neighborhood Fundraising Campaign
We are kicking off our Neighborhood Fundraising Campaign! We need you, Downtown parents, grandparents and kids at heart to donate to our playground project. We had a fantastic turnout at Bailey's Range and have more neighborhood fundraisers in the works. Almost half of the $40,000 we need has been raised and now we need the neighborhood and future playground users to pitch in and show their support. We are happy to accept donations big and small. Our deadline to raise this money is mid August. Please help out this great cause and help bring a much needed attribute to our neighborhood.
Pi on the Spot June 4th
Pi on the Spot will be donating 50% of their lunch sales Monday June 4th to Friends of Lucas Park.
Location: St. Louis University Hospital - 11am
(Vista @ Grand Blvd)
Location: St. Louis University Hospital - 11am
(Vista @ Grand Blvd)
Thanks Everyone!
Thanks to everyone who made it to Bailey's Range
last night for Community Table Night.
We had a fantastic turnout!
For more pictures make sure to check out our Facebook page.
Pi on the Spot June 4th -8th
Pi on the Spot will be donating 50% of their sales to
Friends of Lucas Park during the entire week of June 4th.
Schedule to be posted closer to date of event.
We Won!
Friends of Lucas Park was awarded a $15,000 playground grant from KaBOOM! and the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group. This means lots of opportunities for you to get involved. For ways to help out email us at LucasParkSTL@gmail.com.
We now have to raise matching funds. You can make a donation by clicking on the Donate Here button on the right side of the page. Every little bit helps.
Next Meeting
Our next meeting is scheduled for Monday May 14th at 6:45 pm. We will meet at the Culinaria on the mezzanine level.
KaBoom! Grant
Just submitted our application for the KaBoom! grant. We should hear back by the end of April. Stay tuned for our next committee meeting. We would love to have more community involvement to ensure we get the playground that everyone wants.
Our Goals
The creation of the Lucas Park playground is part of a broader redevelopment of Lucas Park that should significantly alter the long history of problem behaviors in Lucas Park. Look for Lucas Park to be closed down (other than the dog park) in June for improvements that will include a working sprinkler system, new grass, extensive landscaping, general maintenance and security upgrades, and of course the playground which we are planning to build in September. Then, we need your help to use the playground, hang out in Lucas Park, help us with landscaping and maintenance, and generally get to know your community while we restore a wonderful community asset.
One other note for parents with kids who like this link. We are also working with a group who are working to start a charter school called Lafayette Preparatory Academy that will serve families in Downtown, Lafayette Square, and other near southside neighborhoods. Search for the LPA facebook page to get more information.
One other note for parents with kids who like this link. We are also working with a group who are working to start a charter school called Lafayette Preparatory Academy that will serve families in Downtown, Lafayette Square, and other near southside neighborhoods. Search for the LPA facebook page to get more information.
We're Back!
Greetings. The Downtown St. Louis Playground project is coming out of dormancy. We are working towards construction of a playground for Downtown at Lucas Park (13th and Locust), right across the street from the newly renovated Central Library (opens November, 2012) around September 1, 2012. This will be part of a broader revival of Lucas Park. We need your help!!! To help, contact Matt O'Leary at matto@environmentalops.com.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)