Just in time to welcome millions of summer visitors, the Walter Munk Foundation for the Oceans raised funds for and completed a project to repair playground equipment at Kellogg Park in La Jolla Shores.
The affected equipment was installed in 2010 but was damaged last fall, and some sections were closed off with plywood and caution tape.
Walter Munk Foundation President Mary Coakley Munk said that as part of the repair work, crews patched the damaged equipment surface, replaced failed equipment, removed the “badly rusted” roofs on the play structure known as the Lifeguard Tower, repainted to match the colors already there, and removed, resized and cleaned the shade sail over the sculpture known as J.J. the Orphaned Baby Gray Whale, which also was repainted.
This playground at La Jolla Shores was recently repaired and reopened. (Ashley Mackin-Solomon)
“Special kudos go to Dan Mezich and his team at SoCal Shade Sail,” Coakley Munk said. “They removed the extremely soiled, sagging shade sail, cut it to size and cleaned it — a seemingly impossible task. They painted the entire structure and then reinstalled the shade sail.”
Fundraising for the project was launched in March, and the foundation quickly raised $10,000 of the $30,000 needed. It said it would partner with contractors willing to donate their time and resources.
“We have 3-4 million visitors who use that area, and the current equipment has held up very well under extreme weather and use conditions over the years,” Coakley Munk said at the time. “But we desperately want to get it back in shape by summer so everyone that wants to use the playground can. We want it to be safe and usable.”
This section of the playground at Kellogg Park in La Jolla Shores was closed for months because of damage before it was recently repaired. (Michael McCormack)
Coakley Munk thanked San Diego County, the Tom Page family, Puesto La Jolla, Beth Murray and the La Jolla Sunrise Rotary Club for their support of the project and raising the remainder of the money needed.
“I’m extremely fortunate to be lucky enough to work with donors who care immensely about their community,” she said. ♦