INDEPENDENCE — Independence Riverview Community Playground received good news this week with the awarding of a matching grant of $60,000.

The grant advances the goal of city resident Sarah Ramirez and other advocates of securing playground equipment that is accessible to the physically challenged.

"They just got a $60,000 matching grant and are organizing several fundraisers, including a really ambitious one to have dozens of businesses throughout Polk County and Salem donate a portion of their income on a certain day to the project," Independence Community Development Technician Shawn Irvine said.

The grant is through playground equipment manufacturer GameTime, and Ramirez and the IRCP have until Dec. 15 to match the funds up to $60,000.

Ramirez is determined, saying she would like to see the playground funded and installed by the July Western Days celebrations of 2009. Total cost for the playground, which would be installed at Riverview Park, is $275,000.

A successful campaign with this grant would serve well toward that total and put IRCP in a stronger position for securing other grants.

"It puts us in really good stead as far as (IRCP goals)," Ramirez said.

As part of the campaign, she is asking Polk County businesses to offer a percentage of sales Dec. 5 and encouraging people to shop at those businesses in support of the IRCP fund.

It's an ambitious goal.

"We need to have the funds in the bank by Dec. 10, so we can order (the equipment) by Dec. 15," she said.

In other Independence news:

-The city adopted an updated fair housing resolution outlining its fair-housing policy.

Central to the resolution is that the city prohibits "discrimination in the sale, rental, lease, advertising of sale, rental or lease, financing of housing or land to be used for construction of housing or in the provision of brokerage, rental services because of race, color, sex, disability (physical or mental), familial status (children) or national origin is prohibited by Title VIII of the federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988."

City Manager Greg Ellis said the resolution is a requirement for the city to obtain small community development block grants for economic development assistance.

-The city plans to lease offices from the PARC building, formerly a two-story residential home at 414 Main St. S.

The project is part of the city's business incubator. In preparation, the city has worked on upgrades since Oct. 1.

"Right now, we are upgrading the electronics, phone systems, and we are painting it," Ellis said.

There are also plans to weatherize the former home's huge front porch for a possible conference room.

jmuch@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6736