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The planning commission earlier this month approved the project after issues concerning funding for Martha's Playground were resolved. The playground is named for Mr. Lebanon High School graduate Martha Dixon, an FBI agent killed in the line of duty in 1994.

"We're very pleased to see the project finally move forward," said Dixon's brother-in-law, Bill Giarla, executive director of Martha's Fund, a foundation established in 1997 in memory of Dixon.

The project, first proposed in 2003, was delayed until funding for the $450,000 project could be found. Municipal recreation Director Bill Moore said $400,000 will come from the municipal budget and $50,000 from the Martha Fund.

"I think the delay only helped us design a better playground," Giarla said.

Giarla said he is hopeful the playground will be ready next fall.

The playground will be divided into three separate play areas: An area for toddlers, an area for children ages 5 to 10 and an area for older children, ages 10 to 14.

A pavilion will be built adjacent to the playground, and there are plans to add to the existing curved stone wall that is a favorite among children, Giarla said. The current green space will be preserved and no trees will be eliminated, he said.

"That was a concern among some of the residents," Giarla said.

The current playground, which includes a swing set, will be moved to Williamsburg Park on Valleypark Drive.

Architects LaQuatra Bonci is expected to have the final design ready by early October, and Mt. Lebanon commissioners could vote on the project that month.

Bids for the project could go out by the end of the year with construction beginning next spring, municipal Manager Stephen Feller said.

"It's exciting to be able to create a signature playground here," Feller said. "We have 14 other neighborhood playgrounds, but this is the major community playground that everyone uses."

About $200,000 of the cost is for infrastructure improvements planned around the playground, including better drainage and the addition of utilities for an amphitheater to be phased in later. The drainage system and utilities would be installed while the playground is being built.

Dixon's family began Martha's Fund to develop and renovate playgrounds.

Contributions from the foundation have helped fund $20,000 in improvements to playgrounds at the Holy Family Institute in Emsworth, Bird Park, Beltzhoover Elementary School, Jefferson Elementary School and Edgeworth.

Dixon was in the Washington, D.C., metro police station in 1994 when a man wanted for questioning in a homicide opened fire, killing another FBI agent, a police sergeant and wounding two other people before Dixon confronted him. She shot him three times before she was killed. The gunman later committed suicide.

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