Think Building a Playground is Child’s Play? Just Ask Stanford

The Stanford Recreation Park has been a local fixture for as long as Town Clerk Ritamary Bell can remember. 

“There’s always been a swimming hole, a basketball court and a pavilion,” she said. “The playground didn’t get built until 1991, and it seemed like the whole town came together to get it done.”  

At the time, more than 400 community members took on the task of creating a kiddie paradise at the Stanford Playground and Recreation Challenge – known as SPARC Park for short. Volunteer contractors, heavy machine operators, food service providers and inexperienced but determined citizens all participated in the build, which was completed in a record three days. Bell notes that they even had a volunteer willing to stay overnight at the park with his dog to protect the materials.  

Once finished, the new playground offered a multi-level wooden castle and a bright green frog spring-rider that quickly became a kid favorite. A tennis court and skate park soon followed.  

In the decades that followed, however, the playground and park facilities gradually fell into disrepair. In 2021, longtime residents Everett and Helen Cook approached Town Supervisor Wendy Burton with an offer to breathe new life into the park by funding a pickleball court. But as construction got underway, Everett Cook, a private equity financier, said he began to understand just how run down the park had become.  

The surface of the nearby tennis court, for example, was cracked and uneven; the guy-wires securing the net were improperly placed, presenting a hazard. “The court was still being used, and there were accidents waiting to happen,” Cook recalled.  

A group of volunteers had already formed a committee to discuss upgrades to SPARC Park. The Cooks joined as co-chairs, and work began in earnest. 

Members of the community, including a real estate lawyer and a well-known architect, stepped forward to contribute their expertise as planning began to take shape. Recreation Director Lauren Osterman was consulted every step of the way. The Cooks also enlisted Julia Descoteaux, a marketer with experience in pinpointing client needs.  

Descoteaux sent out more than 1,500 emails and mailers to survey the community on who used the park and what upgrades they wanted to see. Among the 100 responses, the tennis court and playground emerged as top priorities.  

The committee began accepting bids for the park’s new design, and settled on Saratoga Associates, a landscape and architectural firm based in Saratoga Springs, New York. Plans included renovation of the tennis court, resurfacing the basketball court, and a revamp of the entire park.  

Meanwhile, fundraising efforts were in full swing. “People stepped up to help and donate across the entire community,” Descoteaux said. Private donations were received totalling $100,000. And Osterman single-handedly obtained a $125,000 New York state grant from the office of Assemblymember Didi Barrett, as well as a $100,000 county municipal grant to repair the docks in the park pond.  

The master plan was unveiled in the spring of 2022, followed by public discussions and social media awareness campaigns. Over 200 attendees celebrated the reopening of the refurbished tennis court that June.  

The playground renovation was next. While a company, Play by Design, was quickly selected, public consensus on how to change the play area took longer. “Everyone had too many emotional ties to the existing structure,” Osterman said. “They had built it themselves and several generations of their kids had played there.” A second round of surveys was sent out in January 2023 and garnered 300 responses. Some people were fine with a total overhaul, while others wanted some parts of the playground to be preserved. Still others wanted it to remain completely as it was. 

Keeping the playground untouched, however, was not an option: the aging equipment fell short of safety standards and narrow gates made the area inaccessible to wheelchairs.  

Knowing that change was inevitable, the committee turned to what a refurbished playground should offer. To decide this, they sought the counsel of subject-matter experts: children.  

Students at Cold Spring Learning Center and Seymour Smith Intermediate Learning Center drew pictures depicting their ideal playground. Hundreds of drawings were collected and uploaded to Instagram and Facebook.  

This May, an event at the Cold Spring gymnasium featured the students’ colorful playground illustrations as well as the master plan, incorporating residents’ suggestion to keep the original 1991 footprint as well as the castle design while adding new features like rubber pathways and safety surfacing. “We wanted to let the community know their concerns were understood,” Descoteaux said. “We know they want a park that will be safe and inclusive.”  

In June, the master plan was updated once again to incorporate some of the students’ ideas, including a seesaw, zip line, and preserving the spring-ride frog. A “nearly final” 3D design of the playground was posted online, and displayed at the Stanford Free Library. 

The estimated cost of the current proposal – including new building materials – is more than $600,000. To date, just over half that amount has been raised. An Aug. 12 “Art After Dark” video event has already sold out and will raise over $6,000. The Stanford Fire Company donated all $18,000 from last year’s charity golf tournament. And a $500,000 state grant proposal is awaiting approval.  

Plans to break ground are set for the spring of 2024. In an echo of the 1991 challenge, the committee expects 100 volunteers to complete the new playground in five days. Beyond that, the committee is looking to refurbish the often-flooded skate park, create a dog run, build walking trails and exercise areas and add new bathroom facilities. Volunteers and potential donors are encouraged to call 917–886-5517 or email stanfordrecreationcommittee@gmail.com. 

As changes to the SPARC playground get underway, local teens Elizabeth and Violet took a philosophical view. “We grew up using the park,” they said. “It’s sad to see the old playground knocked down, but it’s pretty rustic. It’s got to go!”