News: Playground Improvements

The Parks team is currently deconstructing the old playground at Colonel Payne Park (located at the corner of Bennett and Niagara Pkwy).

In the coming weeks, the Parks crew will be working closely with Parkitects to install a new playground which will include features for 2-5 and 5-12 year olds.

"We have 14 municipal playgrounds. A number are outdated and we are doing our best to methodically update, upgrade and or replace the various sites as our budget allows", says Parks & Rec Director Alex Domaradzki. "We've been grateful to have the support of Mayor Austin Tylec and the Council to continue to put Recreation as a priority for our community", Domaradzki adds.

Last year upgrades were made to Raymond Klimek Veterans Park and Carruthers Park. This year the Parks Dept aims to completely replace the unit at Colonel Payne, as well upgrade Pinewoods Parks 2-5 year old structure which is an original wooden base set.

"With future plans to have the 500 Wheatfield Building be the home of the new NT Community Center, coupled with the high amount of family traffic that the NTNLL ballfields bring, Colonel Payne Park was high on our list in terms of playgrounds that needed to be addressed", Domaradzki adds.

The City aims to save a considerable amount of money by doing the installations in-house. With installation cost at about 35% of the total project cost, the City is able to save approximately $35,000 on a project this size by doing a supervised installation, using City staff as the labor guided by a certified playground installer.

The project replaces the old playground unit which was rated as a 5-12 year old unit. The park will keep it's current swings, shade pavilion and sand volleyball court as part of the project.