10/15/2026
🏰 THE PERSAYUS WAY PROJECT PERSAYUS CASTLE UPDATE 🏰
The Beautification Department of The Persayus Way Project would like to provide the community with an important update regarding Persayus Castle. Many of you know that our original plan was to place Persayus Castle on Samuel Avenue. After conducting surveys and speaking with residents in the area, we learned that the community did not support placing the playground at that location. We listened to the residents, and we made the decision to relocate the project.
Our new plan is to build Persayus Castle in the Second Ward, on property owned by The Persayus Way Project, located along Gray Avenue and Colby Avenue. We want the community to understand that building a quality playground is a major investment and a lengthy process. When the funding has not already been secured, a project of this size cannot simply be put together and completed in a year or two. It requires planning, engineering, funding, grants, approvals, partnerships, and a lot of work behind the scenes. We are still actively pursuing grants and other funding opportunities to make Persayus Castle a reality. We are also taking the time to determine the most strategic and efficient way to approach the available funding opportunities so that we can maximize the resources coming into our community.
🏠 OUR CURRENT PRIORITY: NEW HOUSING
The same property where we plan to develop Persayus Castle is also part of our plans for new homes in the Second Ward.
Our current priority is securing the funding needed to begin construction of those homes. These housing grants and development opportunities must come first because we want to make sure we properly establish the housing development on the property.After pursuing the necessary housing funding, we will continue seeking playground-specific grants and other funding opportunities for Persayus Castle.
🏰 YES PERSAYUS CASTLE IS STILL HAPPENING!
To summarize:
✅ Persayus Castle is still part of our plans.
✅ We are still applying for grants and pursuing funding.
✅ The project has been relocated from Samuel Avenue to our Second Ward property along Gray and Colby Avenue.
✅ Our immediate priority is securing funding for the new homes planned for the property.
✅ We will continue pursuing funding opportunities for Persayus Castle.
✅ Our goal remains to complete the entire project and bring a quality recreational space to the community.
We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding. Projects of this size take time, planning, funding, partnerships, and persistence. We would rather take the time to do Persayus Castle the right way than rush the process and fail to deliver the quality park our community deserves.
The vision has not changed. The location and strategy have simply evolved.
We are going to continue working, applying, planning, and pushing until we get it done. 🏰🏡💪🏾
The Persayus Way Project
Beautification Department
Department Director: Austin Olinik
Chief Executive Officer: Million Perry Phifer
