North Side playground to reopen after recent facelift

PITTSBURGH — A North Side playground in Pittsburgh will have a grand reopening on Aug. 3 after getting an amazing facelift.

Decades worth of basketball games and community gatherings at a basketball court known as “The Jungle,” left it in rough shape. There were a lot of cracks in the court and uneven surfaces.

Clay and Cole McColskey grew up playing basketball at “The Jungle,” and they teamed up with local artist Janel Young and Non-Profit Swishh Dreams to redo the court. But first, they needed the finances to get the job done.

They entered a video into an online competition against several courts across the country, and Pittsburghers came out in droves to vote “The Jungle” to victory.

Cole McCloskey said, “Not everybody voting was maybe a fan of basketball, but they just wanted to see Pittsburgh win. That’s really cool to see everybody together.”

One year later, “The Jungle” has a new lease on life and a whole lot of color.

“So much of this is the community’s story that we’re just reinterpreting, and we’re just retelling in a visual way,” said Lead Artist Janel Young.

The grand reopening on Saturday will be an all-day celebration.

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