New North Bay playground to honour Jack Lyons

New North Bay community centre to be net-zero North Bay is getting $25M from the feds to replace the aging West Ferris Arena with a larger facility that will leave no carbon footprint.

A new North Bay playground is a sensory-friendly accessible place for all children to access and honours the memory of Jack Lyons.

Eleven new elements have been added to the already existing playground at One Kids Place in North Bay.

It offers a variety of treatments and rehabilitation for children with disabilities and kids who are in need.

The new playground is in memory of Jack Lyons. The 17-year-old had autism and recently passed away. He was also a regular patient at One Kids Place.

“Running here on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and spending time with people that cared; and we weren’t sitting in the car, we weren’t driving to Toronto. It’s so important for our families,” said Mark Lyons, Jack’s dad.

“There’s 27,000 appointments that come through this door each year, one in 66 kids will have autism.”

“This place is needed in our area, and this place is so important,” said Lyons.

The Jack Lyons Playground is geared specifically for children with autism.

“It’s the first of its kind in North Bay, and it’s very specific to children with autism and sensory challenges, so it’s very special,” said Katharine Strang, who works in the development department at One Kids Place.

“It’s one of the places in the city where children with sensory challenges can come and relax, or also be stimulated and have fun.”

The playground is a community effort and something that Lyons hopes has a lasting impact on the many children and families.

“The paramount is what we have now for our kids with autism. It speaks mountains about our community stepping up and supporting this all the way through,” said Lyons.

He’s also thrilled with the final result of the playground that’s been in the works since the pandemic began.

“I love it. I’m dying with pride,” he said.

“Jack was always proud, it doesn’t matter what you do, I always heard him say, ‘best day ever,’ and it is the best day ever.”