Playground Built On Vacant Pullman Lot In 1 Day

CHICAGO, IL — A long neglected park in the city's Pullman neighborhood turned into a beautiful new community playground in a single day last week. It was a multi-agency partnership that resulted in the construction of "Peace Park" at 104th and Corliss and a project that involved work from people of many different backgrounds coming together for a common goal.

Engineering firm F.H. Paschen and their frequent partners Chicago CRED involved the Chicago White Sox, Chicago Park District and KABOOM!, a national nonprofit that creates spaces for kids to play, in this project that brought in dozens of volunteers from throughout the city and suburbs.

What looked like a vacant lot at 8 a.m. turned into an impressive playground that will be utilized by the children of Pullman and nearby neighborhoods on the South Side by the end of the work day. Scroll through the photos at the top of the article for more scenes from construction day.

"Everyone is playing their own role: some are mixing concrete, others carrying tools and some building the playground itself," said Michael Reed, a laborer-apprentice with F.H. Paschen who was given a full-time job with the company through Chicago CRED. "And it's every race out here. People have come to volunteer even though they do not live in this community. We've really set aside our differences to do this great thing."

Reed is from the neighborhood. A current Roseland resident who grew up in the 100s on the South Side, he says jobs are key to revive these neighborhoods that have struggled so long with dilapidated and abandoned properties.

"I often find myself working on demolitions and other projects at buildings I've been around my whole life,"he said.

F.H. Paschen and Chicago CRED gave Reed the opportunity he says changed his life and jump-started his career in construction.

"It's just how it sounds. Paschen...passion," he said. "I see passion every day when I go to work. I see it in the workers and I see it in myself."

The decision to build the new playground is the result of a group of young men in the neighborhood agreeing to put down their guns.

"When I asked the young men what they wanted from us in return for laying down their guns, they said they wanted a park for their kids. It was incredibly powerful," said Arne Duncan, Chicago CRED managing partner and former U.S. education secretary. "This playground will honor the leadership and commitment to peace that these young men have made."

The children who will use the park themselves contributed photos that depicted their dream playgrounds, many of which were implemented when the final design of the park was made. All the prep work for Peace Park was completed before construction day.

"We are just putting on the finishing touches here," Reed said on site. "We are all out here sweating together, working together and cooperating to do what we need to do to improve this city."

Watch below as groups work tirelessly on a hot day to make "Peace Park" a reality.

Photos by Tim Moran / Patch