Swig of Swig Equities donates $1.3m toward Rockwell playground

Kent Swig, president of Swig Equities, LLC, will make a $1.3 million donation towards the endowment for David Rockwell's creative playground known as Imagination Playground - a rich and constantly transforming environment of diverse materials that encourages child-directed creative play. The donation is being made in memory of Kent Swig's twin brother Robert Swig. Scheduled to open in fall of 2008, the project will serve as a magnet for families from all the boroughs and a new community hub for the FiDi neighborhood in lower Manhattan. The majority of the operating endowment has been raised for the playground through a public/private partnership with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. Imagination Playground was initiated as a pro-bono project by architect David Rockwell and the Rockwell Group. Construction is anticipated to begin in late 2007 in the space at Burling Slip, which is located at John St., between Front and South Sts. in FiDi. "We could not be more grateful to Kent Swig for helping to bring Imagination Playground so close to fruition," said David Rockwell, CEO of Rockwell Group. "It is our hope that the generosity of just a few others will complete the operating endowment and clear the way for a 'free play' environment that will give children an opportunity to exercise their imaginations in new and exciting ways." "We are thrilled that Kent Swig's generous donation is helping make the playground a possibility and we are grateful for his continued investment in FiDi," said Julie Menin, president of community board 1. "When Kent came to us wanting to donate to the community, we thought an introduction to David Rockwell and the Imagination Playground was a great fit for Kent and Swig Equities. Obviously, that has proven to be the case," said Menin.