New Playground Opens at Francis Scott Key Elementary Middle School

A new playground at Francis Scott Key Elementary Middle School (FSK) in Locust Point recently opened just in time for the start of the 2022/2023 school year. The $100,000-project was spearheaded by a fundraising and volunteer effort from the FSK Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO).

Brady Davidow, who is the former co-president of the PTO, helped coordinate the playground project. He said the idea came up during one of the FirstService Residential service days at the school and soon after the FSK PTO began researching the possibility.

The FSK PTO made the new playground a focal point of its Annual Giving Campaign last year. Davidow noted that with this project highlighted, the giving campaign netted $20,000-plus more in donations than usual. Former Co-President Rebecca Salsbury, along with FSK parents Tina Billiet, Lara Faulkner, and John Shea, led the Annual Giving Campaign Committee.

The largest donations came from Merritt Companies, which donated $15,000, and Flywheel Digital, which donated $10,000.

Baltimore City Public Schools demolished the former playground and the FSK PTO hired Playground Specialists to install the new one. C & C Custom Lawncare handled the fence and concrete work.

Davidow said Talley Kovacs, the former FSK PTO vice president and current president, along with parents Nicole Buchholz and Kevin Gaughan, who owns landscape architecture firm FORM Garden Design, worked hard to oversee the execution of the project.

Construction began at the end of the 2021/2022 school year and the playground opened right before the start of school this week. Davidow noted a large concrete slab underneath the former playground led to some delays and cost overruns.

The new playground has a large slide and several climbing apparatuses. A new fence was added around the perimeter, the ground has a new mulch surface, new benches were installed, and the concrete sidewalk between the playground and school was widened.

The FSK PTO is now turning its focus to play areas in the rear of the school which will cater towards older students.

About the Author: Kevin Lynch

Founder and Publisher of SouthBmore.com, longtime resident of South Baltimore, and a graduate of Towson University. Diehard Ravens and O's fan, father of three, amateur pizza chef, skateboarder, and "bar food" foodie. Email me at Kevin@InceptMM.com and follow me on Twitter at @SoBoKevin.