The fountain at the Lakewood Shopping Center. (Photo from Facebook)
The Bowlski’s owner is collecting funds to restore the fountain that has sat defunct in the Lakewood Shopping Center for decades.
One hundred dollars of the $22,000 goal had been donated as of Wednesday morning on a GoFundMe created by Bowlski’s owner Craig Spivey. Spivey does not own the fountain but said he has received permission to restore and maintain it.
The pink stucco fountain sported red tile and embedded granite stars when it was installed in the “esplanade” area across from the Lakewood Theater in the late 1980s. After its brief life as a water fountain, it was turned into a planter that was neglected and overrun with dead plants.
Restoration needs include power, plumbing, landscaping, tile, paint, LED lights and a little elbow grease from volunteers. Spivey said he hopes the repair will become a community project with neighbors helping out where they can.
Spivey plans to keep the named stars and bricks that former neighbors donated to build the fountain. He also wants to add a plaque detailing the history of the fountain and the Lakewood Theater.
“I have lived in Lakewood for 19 years and would love to see the fountain as a destination for families and friends to meet and hang out,” Spivey said on GoFundMe.
