Esplanade Playspace Groundbreaking on Thursday

Volunteers will break ground Thursday on a new Charles River Esplanade playspace .

The $1 million, 10,000 square-foot playground, to be constructed by the Arthur Fiedler Footbridge near the Hatch Shell café, has been completely funded through the generosity of local parents, businesses, schools and neighbors. Read more .

"We’ve been working really hard toward this day for many years,” said Tani Marinovich, Founder of the The Friends of the Esplanade Playspace, a group of Boston neighborhood parents that formed in 2009 with the dream of having more outdoor play space for their children. “It was wonderful to see the community come together to make this project a reality," she said.

Boston-based Halvorson Design Partnership is the architect for the project, and ValleyCrest Landscape Companies was selected as the contractor.

The groundbreaking ceremony starts on Thursday at 4 p.m. with sports and games that focus on building upper body and core strength for kids -  with community partners Hill House and Knuckle Bones on hand.  Refreshments will be provided by Starbucks  and Whole Foods Market.

Edward Lambert, the Commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, and Boston City Councilor Mike Ross will also take part in the celebration, along with other community leaders.