Hit-and-Run Caused Up to $150,000 in Damage at Penny Playground, City Reports

The city of Chehalis estimates that the hit-and-run incident at Penny Playground in late January caused roughly $130,000 to $150,000 in damage to the newly-refurbished playground. 

The city is coordinating with insurance companies to fund the cost of repairs, according to Recreation Manager Lilly Wall. Due to the need to order replacement materials and coordinate repair work for the extensive damage, Wall said that she doesn’t yet have an estimated date of completion for the repairs. 

The damage occurred when an unnamed driver drove through the fence and some playground equipment on Jan. 27. The vehicle was unattended when police arrived on the scene, as the driver allegedly fled on foot after the crash and went to another location. The registered owner of the vehicle arrived at the scene and told police where they could likely find the driver, and when police arrived, they found a 23-year-old Chehalis man in need of medical attention. He was taken to a hospital for treatment and blood was drawn for toxicology tests. Criminal charges are pending the results of those toxicology tests, which the Chehalis Police Department states could take up to a couple months to come back. Until charges are filed, law enforcement has stated that they will not release the name of the alleged driver. 

Penny Playground has yet to be reopened to the public after the completion of a nearly $4 million construction project to improve the park last year. An official grand opening had been tentatively scheduled for the summer of 2020 but was postponed due to the ongoing pandemic, and the playground has remained closed to the public due to COVID-19 concerns.