Viola’s new hub for fun

The Viola Community Center stands out. It’s a large, red barn-style building set against the Palouse hills.

Now, it can add a public playground to its listed amenities.

The center, completed and first used by the public in 2018, boosts a commercial kitchen and has been used for wedding receptions, birthdays, community theater and dances.

Back in 2016, with plans moving along for the construction of the community center, the center’s board of directors also wondered, “What if we added a playground?“

The task was not as simple as one would think.

Teresa Heitmann, board president of the Viola Community Club, which manages the center, said playground equipment was purchased in 2016 using a grant from the Idaho Community Foundation and a land donation. The donation came with the request of a play area for kids.

“We have recognized for years that a gathering place for all ages is needed for any community to stay connected,” Heitmann said. “And it is especially challenging for a bedroom community whose once-active main street has become all private residences.”

But first the club wanted to finish the construction on the center, and the playground equipment went into a temporary storage. It would not be until last year when the club sent out an email newsletter asking for volunteers to help make the playground a reality that Bill Hall came forward.

Hall, a Viola resident and Realtor at Moscow Realty, thought it would be a great project to vie for a Placemaker grant, awarded by the National Association of Realtors to help communities transform spaces. The grant application was a success, and $5,000 was given to the Latah Board of Realtors to help Viola completethe project.

Hall said the Latah Board of Realtors has received three Placemake grants to his knowledge, the first for a bike-fixing station on the Latah Trail and the second to install benches at a park in Potlatch. Hall said the Viola grant was the largest to date, and all funds were matched by the local Realtor board.

Heitmann said the grants provided the final push needed to finish the playground.

The land the playground sits on is on a floodplain which added the need for an engineering analysis and a report to be sent to the county. The project was done with as much volunteer work as possible, which takes time.

“Volunteer work comes after other life commitments, which slows the process and makes certain tasks like pouring concrete in the middle of a weekday a real sacrifice for those who step up to help,” Heitmann said.

The project was completed earlier this month and was capped with a “mulch party.” The playground has swings, monkey bars and a few other pieces of play equipment for kidsof all ages.

“Over six years, there were so many volunteers, and we owe thanks to so many,” Heitmann said.

Nelson can be reached at knelson@dnews.com.