Kids in south Taylor have a new playground to enjoy. The City of Taylor Parks and Recreation Department hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony Oct. 26 to celebrate the recent completion of the Doak Park Project, funded in part through a Texas Parks and Wildlife Grant, Taylor Parks Foundation funds, a Valero Quality of Life grant and city bond funds. “When I presented to council, this corridor of the city had no amenities,” said Parks and Recreation Director Tyler Bybee. “It had this park with two ballfields, but no playground, so for kids that lived in this southwest part of town, they had to cross the main highway to get to the playground, and now they don’t.”
According to city officials, Improvements to the park include a new shaded commercial playground, swing sets, open play fields, accessible parking, and wheelchair accessible sidewalks to the park.
“I just really like the way it turned out,” said Bybee said. “I love that it’s already being used, and I hope it’s just the start.”
Bybee said this project was just the beginning for this area of town.
“I think it’s just the start of adding more amenities to an underserved area because Doak has got a lot of potential,” Bybee said. “I am glad we can get this one to kick start it, so it really means a lot to me to get it done.”
District 1 Councilman Gerald Anderson said he has known of the need since his own days as a youth attending church at Mount Calvary Baptist Church nearby.
“We would end up all over town after church while the parents were talking, and there was never anything for kids to do,” Anderson said. “So we would hang around the church, or there were a few empty stores that we hung around. To know that now that kids in this neighborhood will be able to have somewhere to go and play and be in their own neighborhood and be safe and not have to cross Main Street and not have to cross the tracks is just something that makes me happy. It’s something that I appreciate the city getting behind.”
