People ask me what will happen to the iconic Dragon at Deane's Children's Park when the city renovates this great park and playground. It will be repaired and restored, but isn't going anywhere. It needs a dentist and a pedicure!
Deane's Children's Park · Mercer Island
Every kid on this island should be able to reach the dragon.
Plenty of them can't. The paths through Dragon Park have broken down into gravel, dirt, and roots. The City has adopted a plan to rebuild it for every age and ability. We're raising the money to get it built sooner.Plenty of them can't. The paths through Dragon Park have broken down into gravel, dirt, and roots. The City has adopted a plan to fix that. We're raising the money to build it sooner.
Rendering of the adopted plan, not the park today.A rendering, not the park today.
- The full cost of building the adopted plan
- $5M
- The full cost of building the adopted planTo build the whole plan
- Secured or on track
- $2M
- Secured or on track, from the Parks Levy and a state grantSecured or on track
- Still to raise
- $3M
- Still to raise. This is the part neighbors decideStill to raise
- Neighbors in the group
- 218
- Neighbors already in the Friends of Dragon Park groupNeighbors in the group
What's in the way
The ground has given out
The park is 64 years old. These aren't inconveniences. They're the reason some children on this island have never made it to the dragon.The park is 64 years old. These aren't inconveniences. They're the reason some children here have never made it to the dragon.
Paths that end in gravel
Asphalt laid decades ago has broken down into loose gravel, dirt, and bark chips. A wheelchair stops. A walker stops. A stroller stops.A wheelchair stops. A walker stops. A stroller stops.
Roots and rotting timber
Crumbling timber edging and surfaced tree roots turn most of the site into a trip hazard, and an impassable one on wheels.Most of the site is a trip hazard, and impassable on wheels.
Play only some kids can use
Equipment installed between 2005 and 2012 was never designed for children with mobility, sensory, or learning differences.Equipment from 2005 to 2012, built for a narrower idea of who plays.
What's changing
A path to the dragon, and the woods left standing
The City Council adopted this plan on April 7, 2026, six votes to one. It was shaped by two community surveys, an open house, and more than 1,200 elementary students.The City Council adopted this plan on April 7, 2026, six votes to one. More than 1,200 elementary students helped shape it.
The Forest Path
One firm, stable, step-free route connecting every play area, the shelter, the restrooms, and the dragon. This is the spine of the whole plan, and the first thing private money can buy.One firm, step-free route connecting every play area, the shelter, the restrooms, and the dragon.
- 400 ft
- End to end
- 0 steps
- No curb, no stairNo curb
- 2
- Benches to restBenches
Play for every body
Adaptive swings, ground-level climbing, and transfer points so a child can leave a wheelchair and get in.Adaptive swings, ground-level climbing, and transfer points.
Quiet corners
Sensory play and tucked-away spaces for kids who need less noise, not more of it.
The woods stay
The route is designed around the trees that are already there. Nobody is clearing the forest to pour a path.Designed around the trees already there. Nobody is clearing the forest.
The dragon stays
Repaired and restored right where he sits. As our founder puts it, he needs a dentist and a pedicure.Repaired and restored right where he sits. He needs a dentist and a pedicure.
From the adopted plan
Renderings and site plan from the Deane's Children's Park Site Plan Report, adopted by Mercer Island City Council as Resolution No. 1692 on April 7, 2026. Prepared for the City by Berger Partnership.Renderings and plan from the Site Plan Report adopted as Resolution No. 1692, April 7, 2026. Prepared for the City by Berger Partnership.
The dragon
He has already been rebuilt once
Kenton Pies built the first one in 1965. Plaster and steel, fifty feet long, six tons. By 2013 the paint would not hold any longer, and Parks staff tracked him down in Montana to ask about repairs.
He was 81. He offered to build a new one instead. He did, in four pieces, and had them trucked across the state.
Ask anyone here whether a thing worth keeping is worth rebuilding.
- 1962
- The Preschool Association builds the park with volunteer labor and donated materials.
- 1965
- Kenton Pies sculpts the first dragon. Fifty feet, six tons of plaster and steel.
- 2013
- At 81, he builds the replacement standing today. Forty-five feet, and better than the first.
- 2026
- The City adopts a plan to rebuild everything around him, so everyone can get there.
Who we are
Six organizations, one park
Friends of Dragon Park is a coalition of island groups working alongside the City. We don't own the park and we don't run the project. We raise support for it.
Rotary Club of Mercer Island
Set up the first account for earmarked gifts and hosted the June event at The Rock.
Mercer Island Preschool Association
Built the original park in 1962. Still here, still raising money for it.
Moms for Safe Mercer Island
Parent advocacy for safe, well-kept places for island children to play.
Friendship Circle
The lived experience of families raising children with special needs.
Outdoors for All
Adaptive recreation expertise. They tell us what accessible play actually requires.
Special Services and Learning Disabilities
Keeps the plan honest about the full range of learning and sensory needs.
The community
This all started in a Facebook group
218 neighbors are already in it. It is where news lands first, where the events get organised, and where you can ask the co-chairs a question and get a real answer.218 neighbors are already in it. It is where news lands first and where the events get organised.
Join the group
Public group. Anyone on the island can join, and anyone anywhere can read it. No cost, no commitment, and it is the fastest way to know what is happening next.Public group. Free to join, and the fastest way to know what happens next.
Join on Facebook
(opens in a new tab)
218 members
and counting
Where the money is
Two million in. Three million to go.
The whole plan costs about $5 million and gets built in phases over several years. The City has $2 million secured or on track. The rest decides how many phases happen, and how soon.
The whole plan costs about $5 million and gets built in phases. The City has $2 million secured or on track. The last bar is the one you can change.
- $1.5M committed
- City of Mercer Island, from the 2022 Parks Levy.
- $500K applied for
- State Recreation and Conservation Office grant. Decision pending.
- $3M from all of us
- Grants, foundations, businesses, and neighbors. Every phase waits on this.
How to give
Give directly to the City
Donate through Mercer Island Parks and Recreation and write Dragon Park in the designation field. Name the park, or the gift goes to the general fund.
Give to Dragon Park (opens in a new tab)What changed
Rotary has handed off collections
The Rotary Foundation set up the first account and carried it as far as an all-volunteer treasurer could. We're grateful, and gifts now go straight to the City instead.
Other ways
Show up, or say something
Come to a coalition event, wear the T-shirt, write the Council, or tell one neighbor what this park is going to become. All of it counts.
Straight answers
What people actually ask us
- Is the dragon being removed?
- No. He stays exactly where he is and gets repaired and restored. Nothing in the adopted plan moves or replaces him.
- Are you paving the forest?
- No. The route runs through the woods and is designed around the trees already standing. Preserving the wooded character was one of the top things residents asked for, and it is written into the plan.
- When will it be built?
- In phases, over several years. The plan is a long-range roadmap, not a single construction season. Phase one waits on grant decisions and private giving.
- Who actually receives my money?
- The City of Mercer Island. Give through the Parks and Recreation website and designate Dragon Park. Friends of Dragon Park does not hold your gift.
- Is my gift tax-deductible?
- Gifts designated to Dragon Park go to the City, a public agency. How that applies to your return depends on your situation, so check with your tax advisor. We can't give tax advice.
- What happened to the money already raised?
- About $15,000 is sitting in an earmarked account, untouched. It transfers to the City as soon as the Parks team is ready to take outside donations for this project.
Sixty-four years ago, your neighbors built this park by hand.
Finishing the path to the dragon is the same job, one generation later.
Give to Dragon Park
Through the City of Mercer Island. Remember to designate Dragon Park.