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The Sand Box at Gateway Park To Debut at Rosslyn Jazz Fest


Work on our sand play area in Gateway Park will be completed in time for the Rosslyn Jazz Festival September 12. The Sand Box at Gateway Park has been created from a disused fountain on the western edge of Gateway ParkOnce an unused part of the park, we hope it will become a place where children and their caregivers can go to relax and have fun.

In recent weeks, the old fountain walls were painted with lively scenes. Local artists Evelyn Powers, Patrick Kirwin and junior designer Emily Krause continue working together to create a mural and other decorative features. They'll soon paint dozens of stone animals — from bunnies to turtles to frogs — who will be placed in the park as part of the scene.

We'll launch The Sand Box with a special ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1:30 p.m. at the Rosslyn Jazz Festival on September 12. Throughout the day, we'll have other activities for kids as well, including face painting at 3:15 p.m. and sidewalk chalk coloring at 5:00 p.m.

Special thanks to Arlington County, which partnered with the Rosslyn BID on this project to drain the fountain and provide the sand. We are excited to see this project close to completion, and look forward to seeing it enjoyed!


Photo Captions: (TOP) Artist Patrick Kirwin paints flowers and animals on the new sand play area. 
(RIGHT) These bunnies are among several stone animals awaiting painting and placement in the park.
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