On Saturday, October 21st, 2006, the Markward Taney Playground Committee and Friends of Schuylkill River Park celebrated the opening of the new Taney Playground located at Taney and Pine Streets. The event marked the culmination of several years of lobbying and fundraising to create a safe, fun and visually appealing recreation area in the place of a formerly outdated and dangerous playground. The playground is heavily used by neighborhood schools and families as well as children from more distant parts of the City through day camps, after school programs and sports leagues. Even visitors to Philadelphia take advantage of the playground’s unique and central location along the Schuylkill River in Center City as it is the closest playground to Center City hotels.

The rebuilding of Taney Playground has been a grassroots, community-wide effort. “Many friends, neighbors, and members of our Philadelphia community joined together to make the renovation of Taney Playground a reality,” said Lauren Wylonis, M.D, founder of the Markward Taney Playground Committee. In addition to scores of donations from individuals and businesses in the neighborhood, major funding was committed by both the State ($60,000) and City ($100,000) thanks to the efforts of Senator Vincent Fumo, State Representative Babette Josephs, Councilwoman Anna Verna, and Governor Ed Rendell.

The effort to rebuild Taney Playground was spearheaded by Dr. Wylonis in September of 2003. A local resident whose twins used the playground, Dr. Wylonis believed the thousands of children who used the playground as their backyard deserved better. She was appalled by its dangerous and deteriorating condition, from rusted and exposed bolts to broken equipment that posed serious safety hazards to children. The playground – with its poor lighting and lack of maintenance - had also become a magnet for vagrants, vandals and drug dealing.

Dr. Wylonis formed the Markward Taney Playground Committee under the auspices of the Friends of Schuylkill River Park. She recruited other residents in the neighborhood to help her fundraise, lobby and generally raise awareness about the playground’s poor condition. In September 2005, Councilwoman Anna Verna committed $100,000 to the capital budget of the playground, allowing the committee to finally begin to move forward with a major redesign and rebuilding. In the following months, numerous charettes, an open house and a town meeting were held to solicit and incorporate feedback from community stakeholders in the design process.

The new playground features a bright purple and yellow elevated walkway system with four slides and monkey bars, accessed through stairs, ladders and a climbing wall. Bright red park benches, some in the form of zoo animals, provide seating. A toddler play area replicates the equipment for older children on a smaller scale. Special rubber surfacing is under all the equipment, with swings abutting both play areas.

Fundraising efforts will continue in order to allow for landscaping and further playground amenities, as well as ongoing upkeep of the playground.