Alton's Olin Park Receives New Rubber Mulch After Madison County Grant

Apr 20, 2023 4:28 PM Apr 20, 2023 4:53 PM

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ALTON - New rubber mulch has been installed at Olin Park, a 4.7-acre park located in the City of Alton at State Street and Grand Avenue.

The City of Alton Parks and Recreation Department maintains the park. The new mulch installation occurred after a $15,000 environmental grant was awarded by Madison County.

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"Olin is the only public park with a playground within a mile radius and serves a highly populated and diverse portion of the city, including an array of socio-economic classes," Alton Parks and Rec Director Michael Haynes said. "The playground is approximately 6,500 square feet and has had a wood mulch fall surface since its inception over a decade ago.

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"Without constant maintenance, wood mulch surfacing can become compacted, causing water flow issues and unwanted vegetation growth. In addition, wood mulch can float and wash away, absorb water, erode, or blow away.

"Replacing the current wood mulch with 100% recycled rubber mulch nuggets will rectify the aforementioned issues we have with the Olin Park playground surfacing. Environmentally friendly rubber mulch will vastly improve stormwater drainage in that section of the park along with eliminating the potential growth of mold, fungi, and weeds, reducing allergy risk."

Haynes continued and said the addition of rubber mulch will also aid in recycling millions of end-of-life tires instead of sending them to landfills.

"Replacing the wood mulch playground surfacing with rubber mulch will save time and money for years to come by eliminating annual mulching and continuous maintenance on it," he said. "It’s the perfect environmentally responsible solution to our wood mulch issue at Olin Park."

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