Photo Credit: Amarillo Parks and Recreation
Founded in 1890 and consisting of 33 acres, Ellwood Park is Amarillo’s oldest park. Over the past 20 years, the park has experienced declining use and activity, so the director of parks and recreation initiated a demographic study of the surrounding neighborhoods to find out why. The analysis indicated a sharp increase in the number of seniors living adjacent to the park. The director and staff members then initiated a park redevelopment process to create a new senior park.
A Good Cause
Although total construction costs amounted to $495,000, there was more than one helping hand in funding the project. For instance, Baptist Community Services, a subsidiary of Baptist Hospitals, which operates 675 senior residential units in seven different complexes, donated $15,830 for the construction of a performance stage.
Upon hearing of the news for a senior park, Dusty McGuire, coordinator of Keep Amarillo Beautiful, contacted the city manager to offer the organization’s support. “Amarillo needed a park where the aging population could be outdoors to exercise in order to maintain an active lifestyle,” McGuire says.