Milwaukee Public Schools
Press Release

Sprite Spark Parks Grant Helps Milwaukee’s Juneau Playground Basketball Court Get Back in the Game

Beginning this summer, local teens will be able to express their most uncontainable basketball moves on a refurbished local court.

By - Jul 3rd, 2012 09:34 am

Beginning this summer, local teens will be able to express their most uncontainable basketball moves on a refurbished local court. Milwaukee Recreation recently received a $15,000 grant based on votes it earned through the national Sprite Spark Parks Project initiative, which refreshes courts in public parks and recreation centers throughout the country.

Voting in the Sprite Spark Parks Project, a joint program from Sprite and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), took place between March 28 – May 31 on SpriteSparkParks.com. Thanks to the 46,627 votes it received, Juneau Playground, which is located at 6415 West Mount Vernon Avenue, will receive new backboards and rims for two basketball courts. The courts will also be seal coated, lined, and color coated.

“We would like to thank everyone who supported Juneau Playground in the Sprite Spark Parks Project,” said Dave Altoff, Coca-Cola’s Market Unit Vice President in Milwaukee. “The court will soon be a cleaner, safer, more fun place to play and we can’t wait to see our young local basketball players using it to hone their skills.”

“Basketball courts such as Juneau Playground are among the best places teens can go to be physically active, improve their health and have fun with friends,” said Molly Barrett, Milwaukee Recreation’s director. “We’d like to thank the Milwaukee community for their overwhelming participation in the Sprite Spark Parks Project. This proves that the preservation of vital public spaces like basketball courts is important to people everywhere, and that is a great thing to see.”

Juneau Playground is one of the more than 50 courts Sprite and the NRPA are refreshing across the country this year. The grants will be used to refurbish rims, backboards, lights, benches and playing surfaces – sparking new life to these play spaces. Sprite Spark Parks Project voting is now closed, but people can still help support other public parks and recreational facilities by donating through NRPA’s public engagement initiative at americasbackyard.org

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.

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