More than $2 million in donations raised for redesigned Lake Drive Park in Palm Beach
Nearly $2 million has been raised for the Lake Drive Park improvement project, town officials announced this month, and more donations are on the way.
During the Aug. 9 Town Council meeting, Assistant Town Manager Carolyn Stone said $1.9 million in donations had been received for the park, which opened last November following a $4 million redesign.
Additional donations of $200,000 and $10,000 also have been pledged, Stone said.
At their meeting, council members unanimously approved a resolution accepting the $200,000 from National Philanthropic Trust, a public charity based in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.
It is town policy that any donations above $25,000 must be formally accepted by the council, Stone said.
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The other donation was pledged by a Palm Beach resident.
Once both pledges are paid in full, Stone said, the town will have received more than $2.1 million in donations for Lake Drive Park improvements.
That total is inching closer to the $2.5 million that interior designer Scott Snyder is working to raise for construction and maintenance costs for the park.
A fundraiser held last May at the home of Llwyd and Diana Ecclestone netted nearly $1.5 million toward that goal.
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Council members praised Snyder and those who donated to the Lake Drive Park project.
"I thank the generous donors to our town who help make Palm Beach so incredibly special," Mayor Danielle Moore said. "There are more than 20 donors here. I'd like to thank them again for stepping up to the plate and helping us keep Lake Drive Park beautiful."
Not including the two remaining pledges, the town has received a total of 22 donations for the Lake Drive Park project, Stone said.
Donations range from $500 to $500,000, according to town documents. More than half of the donations were earmarked for designated locations within the park, including benches, walking paths, flagpoles and dog fountains. The remainder were general donations.
The town plans to recognized donors with individual donor plaques at designated locations. Plaques will vary in size depending on the amount donated.
The town council also agreed to recognize donors who made general donations with a single plaque that will be placed at an unspecified location within the park.
"Although there are donors who chose not to pick a specific area, we do want them to know how grateful we are to them," Moore said.
Park construction began in the spring of 2021, with crews adding cobblestone walkways, native and low landscaping, traditional-style benches, a flagpole, bike racks and dog fountains composed of coral and antique tile with a bronze fixture.
Work also included parking lot resurfacing, equipment landscape screening and a reconfiguration of the trash-compactor area.
Keith Williams of landscape architecture firm Nievera Williams completed the project design pro bono.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the park and the redeveloped Town Marina was held in December.
Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at jwagner@pbdailynews.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach nets $2 million in donations for redesigned Lake Drive Park
