Volunteers help assemble an accessible playground on Saturday as part of a joint city of Olean and Intandem project at Marcus Park.

Volunteers help assemble an accessible playground on Saturday as part of a joint city of Olean and Intandem project at Marcus Park.

Photo provided

Volunteers help assemble an accessible playground on Saturday as part of a joint city of Olean and Intandem project at Marcus Park.

Photo provided

Volunteers help assemble an accessible playground on Saturday as part of a joint city of Olean and Intandem project at Marcus Park.

Photo provided

Volunteers help assemble an accessible playground on Saturday as part of a joint city of Olean and Intandem project at Marcus Park.

Photo provided

OLEAN — The rainy, cold weather didn’t stop the group of over 100 volunteers this weekend at Intandem, showing up and coming together to build an inclusive playground, the first of its kind in Cattaraugus County.

“This is a very emotional day for me,” Intandem CEO Mari Howard expressed as she spoke to the crowd of volunteers.

Howard shed a rare tear as she addressed the volunteers, sharing the story that inspired the years-long project. Many years ago, she watched a young wheel-chaired bound child, forced to sit on the sidelines and watch other kids play on the playground.

“For a city this large, we have to do better,” she said.

Intandem hosted the Community Build Day on Saturday, September 6, starting at 8 a.m. at Marcus Park, located right next to their Intandem Solutions building. Intandem partnered with the City of Olean on this $2.1 million project, expected to be completed this fall.

Development began in early 2022, when now Common Council President Vernon Robinson Jr. initially proposed the city overhaul Marcus Park.

“This is something I believe to be beneficial to the city, the ward, to all constituents out there,” Robinson said in the council’s meeting, over three years ago. “Intandem is a great organization that has done a lot for our city and our community.”

The inclusive playground is meant for individuals of all abilities to play and socialize. The playground, from Parkitects, is designed to cater to children’s motor, social, and cognitive skills. Parkitects has a junior play committee, made up of children of all ages and abilities to test out and play on equipment, give their honest feedback, tell the company what they need and what doesn’t work.

Details like double-wide ramps, a wheelchair-accessible rubber surface, and shade spots are features that can be overlooked by able-bodied folks but are essential to children with varied abilities, both physical and developmental.

Not only can disabled children play themselves, but they can do what they were never able to: play alongside their friends and peers.

The crowd worked until 5 p.m., building equipment, pouring concrete, and assembling fixtures. The Olean Fire Department even stopped by for a few hours to lend a hand to the cause. The weather did not diminish the smiles on the volunteers’ faces (and the few tears shed) as Intandem employees, city officials, and community members came together for this groundbreaking addition to our city.

“Remember, you aren’t just building a playground,” reaffirmed Howard. “You are building opportunities.”

(Belle Martinelli is the membership services specialist with the Greater Olean Area Chamber of Commerce)