North Adams Installs New Playground Equipment
 The city has two new playgrounds, one at Kemp Park and the other at Windsor Lake. Above, the Kemp Park play area is near the driveway entrance at Sullivan School. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Two new city playgrounds will be ready for kids next spring thanks to a $200,000 state grant.
The playgrounds from Landscape Sculptures Inc. were being installed over the past few weeks by North Branch Landscape Co. of Stamford, Vt.
Pam Tworig, president of North Branch, said the equipment arrived at the end of October, later than planned.
"The city selected the equipment ... they had the whole thing designed and as soon as I signed my name to the bid, they were then able to actually order them," she said while looking over the cleared area at Windsor Lake where four heavy steel arcs were about to be installed. "This stuff is new, state of the art. I think it will last literally forever the stuff is so well made."
The playgrounds were designed to somewhat reflect their locations; the Kemp Park equipment is more traditional while the Windsor Lake one takes into account the landscape and is more geared to climbing.
"We thought it would fit with the ROPES camp theme," said Administrative Officer Michael Canales, referring to the Police Department's Respecting Other People, Encouraging Self-Esteem summer camp.
Fish Pond's play areas in particular were in need of rejuvenation, and difficult to access for children and adults with disabilities. The city is under an order from the U.S. Department of Justice to update its public facilities to meet federal Americans With Disabilities codes, including its playgrounds and athletic fields.
"We had to make sure they were best in terms of pathways," said Canales. "Ours had to be designed. We had to make sure the entrances and the pathways would all be compliant with our ADA issues."
The new paths are properly sloped, rough and permeable, allowing water to flow through and providing a non-skid surface. The mix of binding agent and three-eighths inch aggregate is new to North Adams but has been used elsewhere, said Tworig.
"Your standard regular blacktop, water runs off," she said. "This is totally porous ... you can dump a five-gallon bucket of water on it and it will go right through it."
The grant money came through the Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs' Our Common Backyards program; some $10.3 million was made available to cities and towns across the state. The maximum grant was $200,000 and the projects had to be completed by the end of the year.
Tworig said they'd be done in time, although the winter weather will keep the kids off until spring.
The company has experience installing prefab structures but it was the first time it had taken on playgrounds. But while familiar with the concept, the playgrounds were a learning experience.
"It's not an easy task, they are not easy to put up," Tworig said. "These things are very sophisticated. They're not forgiving at all in terms of tolerances. ...
"We like to do things that are challenging that when we do it, we learn something new ... so it gives us an opportunity to learn new things and broaden our horizons."
She and her husband and employees weren't very familiar with the lake, and thought it a real "hidden gem."
"We've been amazed at what a great place this is ... the people are really nice that come up here," she said. "Down at that [Kemp Park], the neighbors are really nice. Someone stopped by one day and thanked us for putting the playground in ... all the kids just want to get on it."
Tags: ADA, playgrounds, state grant,
