Parents with young children in several city neighbourhoods will have to look a little further from home for a set of monkey bars, swings and slides to play on this summer.
As part of the City’s Playground Lifecycle Program, four sites will be updated with new equipment in 2016, including Erin Ridge Drive Park, Willoughby Park (10 Willoughby Dr.), Delage (90 Delage Crescent), and Henderson (136 Heritage Drive).
Each year the city’s public works department assesses tot lots and playgrounds for safety issues. Those sites approaching life expectancy of 15 to 20 years, or those needing extensive repair are slated for reconstruction. The lifecycle program applies only to neighbourhood parks and doesn’t include sports fields or schoolyard playgrounds.
Danielle Podlubny, manager of community recreation with the City of St. Albert, said the city holds public engagement meetings (in fall or spring) to ask what type of equipment residents want to see in their neighbourhood playgrounds.
“Newer technologies offer different materials and play pieces, but all equipment meets CSA (Canadian Standards Association) standards and is chosen for longevity,” said Podlubny. “What we can’t change is doing the work in warm weather months.”
While there has been some question as to why the city is revitalizing playgrounds at exactly the time when children are out of school and free to play, Podlubny said it comes down to timing, and the logistics of getting all the work done in one season using one contractor.
Each playground takes four to six weeks to revitalize in the June to September schedule. The work at Erin Ridge Drive Park is now underway, which will be followed by Willoughby and then, in late summer, by Delage and Henderson Parks.
Erin Ridge residents Carla and Justo Soto recently moved to the area with their two teen sons, and say they mainly use the field adjacent to Erin Ridge Drive Park, not the play structures.
“Most people walk the dog or play soccer on these fields. I’ve never seen more than 10 kids on the structures. But the equipment seemed fine – I wouldn’t know it needed replacing,” said Justo. “But I support the work. It’s understandable that the city has to do it when weather allows.”
“We just moved here from Regina,” added Carla Soto. “We appreciate having recreational spaces like these in our neighbourhoods.”
The City of St. Albert maintains almost 60 neighbourhood park playgrounds, performing monthly inspections between May and October (and bi-monthly between November and April). Minimal repairs (tightening/adjusting) are completed immediately, and work orders are created for larger tasks.
For information on playgrounds set for revitalization and public input meetings, see stalbert.ca and search playground rehabilitation.
