A Texas family spent more than a month building a ‘dream-come-true’ rollercoaster in their front yard – only to be forced to tear it down after a petty neighbor complained to city officials.
Fabio Araujo, of Grapevine, and his three children, Emily, 13, and twins Felipe and Evelyn, 9, worked on weekends and in their spare time through the brutal summer heat to bring the rollercoaster to life.
But the labor of love came to a screeching halt after city officials requested it be removed following the neighbor’s complaint.
‘I knew it was temporary and eventually the city would come and tell us to put it down, but it was a neighbor complaint that took it down,’ Fabio told The Dallas Morning News.
Looking to keep his kids from sitting inside all summer, the dad asked what he could do to keep them entertained.
Inspired by his 9-year-old son, who drafted an out-of-the-box vision for the rollercoaster, the eager family got to work.
‘He came with this little giant and crazy rollercoaster, and I said, let’s make a smaller one that can fit,’ Fabio said.
After gathering supplies, suffering through splinters and a summer of hard work, the ride finally came to fruition in August.
Fabio said he took the first spin on the new attraction that would eventually attract kids from all over the neighborhood.
Though the rollercoaster didn’t last long, the memories will remain forever.
‘We enjoyed building it. That’s something that would be in our memories forever,’ Fabio said.
‘This is bringing joy for us, riding with the friends and a lot of kids on the neighborhood came to ride it. It was fun and was special,’ his eldest child, Erica, added.
His youngest daughter, Evelyn, said their summer project helped her understand how much her father loves her.
‘The moment I was born he was already saying, “I love you,”‘ Evelyn added.