BRADENTON - Steele Niewodowski actually couldn't be stopped for a quote, but his smile told the story quite well.

Nathan Nolte, the principal of Peace Lutheran School, said he's glad to open up the park to the community.

Climbing and hiding on and in the playground equipment of Peace Community Park on Saturday, a fast camera shutter froze the 2 1/2-year-old for a moment, but that was about it. Under the watchful eye of his grandmother, Manatee County Commissioner Donna Hayes, and with a teddy bear nearly as tall as himself held close, he preferred playtime to adults talking.

"I just think the park has just come out wonderful," Hayes said. "It's nice equipment, it's durable, and it's going to be available to them, and they'll just have a wonderful time.

"This small area needed an uplift. I'm just glad the county could work with the CRA in getting this accomplished."

Karen Stewart, the economic development manager for Manatee County government, said the park will help improve the neighborhood. The three-acre park is open to the public from dawn to dusk.

"Parks are created in community redevelopment areas to bring communities together and develop synergy in neighborhoods, to improve the neighborhood and to create a place where people can come together and improve the neighborhood atmosphere," she said.

The school had a playground with outdated equipment, she said, and plans were always in the CRA's Action Plan. There's still some work left to be done, including signs, trash cans and more picnic tables, she said.

Volunteers came out and built the shade benches and picnic tables. "Later on, we came out and worked on the bollards to block off the parking area, and another day Nathan (Nolte) and other volunteers put in the disc golf portion," Stewart said. "And then the final part was the court and the playground."

Steele Niewodowski, 2 1/2, takes a quick break from playing on the new playground.

Nathan Nolte, the principal of Peace Lutheran School and a member of the citizens' advisory board for the CRA, said he was thrilled.

"We're ecstatic about it," Nolte said. "We're just so excited to be able to have it for our own use and then to be able to open up something as beautiful as this to the community."

Lynette Marriott lives out east in Manatee County, but her son Cole, 15, goes to school at Peace Lutheran. She said it's a beautiful place.

"I came out here to volunteer for the school, to help set up," she said. "It gives the community a nice place to go."

Janene Witham, chairwoman of the CRA Advisory Board, said the park will give the community a good sense of itself.

"It's been a goal of the Advisory Board to really reach out to the community, to give them an opportunity of personal ownership of something, and a sense of place," she said.

"Hopefully it's going to bring more people together to be able to better know who their neighbors are, who's supposed to be around, who's not necessarily supposed to be around."

Linda DuBois, who's lived in Bradenton for three months and recently moved from Manassas, Va., also was happy.

Linda DuBois, left, helps her grandson Ryan Marino cut the ribbon to officially open the new park.

"It's nice. I think it's beautiful," she said. "I think it's just a wonderful thing they've done for the community."

Her grandson Ryan Marino, 7, said he uses the equipment three times a day.  "We have three recesses," Ryan said, "and the fourth one is when we go home."

Finally, the time came to cut the ribbon, and Hayes, the chairwoman of the county's Community Redevelopment Agency, gave the word to a large group of children to cut the ribbon on the new park behind Peace Lutheran Church, and said it was a great day for the city and the community.

Standing on line after the ribbon cutting, Amanda Wix said she's glad to see the park finished.

"I love it, it's beautiful. I'm actually happy it opened, because I'll have some place to take my baby to play," she said. "I think it's going to be really good for the community and the children that live around here."

"I think it's a marvelous turnout today," Hayes said. "It's a nice day, and I'm just so pleased to see so many people here with their families."